Medical Personnel
At First Response Scotland, our medical personnel are trained to provide professional first aid and emergency medical care at events, workplaces and public venues. Their role is to respond quickly to medical incidents, assess and treat injuries and illnesses, provide reassurance to those in need and work alongside the emergency services when further medical assistance is required. Our medical personnel help ensure the safety and wellbeing of everyone on site while supporting a safe and well-prepared environment.
What is a 'medic'?
Good question, because not everyone is.
Not everyone working at an event is a medic. The term medic is often used incorrectly, and not everyone providing medical cover should use that title. Medical competence exists on a spectrum, with different levels of training, knowledge, responsibility and clinical practice.
It begins with the First Aider—someone who has completed an accredited first aid qualification and is trained to provide immediate lifesaving assistance until more advanced help arrives.
A First Aider is trained to:
- Perform CPR and use an AED.
- Manage an unconscious casualty.
- Control severe bleeding.
- Treat minor wounds, burns and fractures.
- Assist with choking casualties.
- Recognise common medical emergencies and summon further assistance where required.
The next level is the First Responder. A First Responder has undertaken more advanced pre-hospital emergency care training and is equipped to assess, stabilise and manage casualties during the critical period before an ambulance crew arrives.
A First Responder is trained to:
- Conduct structured patient assessments.
- Recognise and manage life-threatening illnesses and injuries.
- Administer emergency oxygen (where qualified and authorised).
- Manage airway emergencies using basic airway adjuncts.
- Monitor vital signs and identify patient deterioration.
- Provide enhanced trauma care and medical management while awaiting ambulance services.
The next level is practitioners educated to FREC 4 or an equivalent qualification. FREC 4 provides education broadly aligned with the knowledge expected of an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), although an individual's clinical title and scope of practice are determined by their employer and governance arrangements.
Personnel operating at this level are trained to:
- Perform comprehensive patient assessments.
- Make clinical decisions using structured assessment models.
- Manage medical and traumatic emergencies using advanced techniques.
- Utilise a wider range of airway management equipment.
- Administer approved medications within their scope of practice.
- Prepare patients for transport and provide ongoing monitoring and treatment.
- Work alongside NHS ambulance services and other healthcare professionals during emergency incidents.
At First Response Scotland, we ensure that every member of staff is introduced by their correct clinical role and only works within the scope of practice for which they are trained, competent and authorised.
Protecting the public begins with honesty, professionalism and clear standards.
So, how can you tell who is who?
Here is our Medical Uniform Standards:
At First Response Scotland, all members of our medical division wear a standardised uniform regardless of their role. This ensures a professional appearance, promotes public confidence and allows our teams to be easily recognised at any incident or event.
Our standard medical uniform consists of:
- A green polo shirt for day-to-day duties or a formal green short sleeved shirt for ceremonial duties and events.
- Green combat trousers.
- A black utility belt.
- Black safety boots.
- A matching green stab-resistant vest.
- An issued cap displaying the staff member's role (wearing the cap is optional but it forms part of the official uniform).
To ensure complete transparency and easy identification, every member of staff has their clinical role clearly displayed on the front and back of their vest, as well as on their epaulettes. This allows patients, event organisers, emergency services and members of the public to immediately identify the level of care each individual is qualified to provide.
Depending on their qualification and scope of practice, staff may display one of the following role identifiers:
- First Aider
- Medical Team – FREC 3 / Event Medic
- Medical Team – FREC 4 / Event Medic
- Ambulance (used by registered paramedics, student paramedics and ambulance technicians operating within their approved scope of practice)
This clear identification helps prevent confusion, ensures staff work within their recognised scope of practice and enables patients and partner emergency services to quickly identify the most appropriate clinician when required.
A professional appearance is more than just wearing a uniform—it reflects our commitment to accountability, transparency and delivering safe, high-quality patient care.
What does Event Medical Personnel do?
Our Event Medical Personnel work closely with venue management, first aid teams and emergency services to help ensure events run safely and efficiently. Whether providing full medical cover or supporting an existing venue medical team, our personnel can seamlessly integrate into your event operations. We are able to take responsibility for on-site medical provision on behalf of the venue when required or work alongside existing staff using our pre-planned medical response procedures, the venue's existing emergency plans or a combination of both. This collaborative approach helps maintain effective communication, rapid casualty care, clear medical response procedures and a safe environment for everyone in attendance.
Our Medical Personnel Provide:
🚑 Immediate assessment and treatment of injured or unwell patients.
🩹 Provision of first aid, emergency care and ongoing patient monitoring.
🏥 Assessment of patients to determine the most appropriate level of care, helping reduce unnecessary ambulance call-outs where clinically appropriate.
💉 Management of medical incidents in accordance with current clinical guidelines and scope of practice.
📞 Liaison with the Scottish Ambulance Service, NHS and other emergency services when escalation is required.
⚕️ Identification and management of potential medical risks before they escalate into serious incidents.
🧍 Medical patrols throughout your event or venue to identify and respond to incidents quickly.
📋 Completion of patient report forms (PRFs) and accurate clinical documentation.
🚨 Rapid response to medical emergencies, including cardiac arrests, trauma, falls and other urgent incidents.
👥 Reassurance, treatment and welfare support for patients until they are discharged or transferred to ambulance crews.
BECOME AN EVENT MEDIC TODAY!
Whether you're an experienced Event Medic or looking to start a rewarding career in pre-hospital care, we'd love to hear from you.
Already qualified? Excellent! Join our team and provide professional medical cover at events across Scotland, working alongside experienced personnel in a variety of settings.
Not qualified yet? That's absolutely fine. We can help you gain the training and qualifications needed to begin your journey as an Event Medic. We offer guidance and support to help you build your skills and confidence every step of the way.
At First Response Scotland, we're committed to delivering exceptional patient care while investing in the development of our people. If you're calm under pressure, compassionate and passionate about helping others, we'd love to have you on our team.
Apply below today and begin your journey with First Response Scotland.
How we manage our teams:
Snappy, Safe & Stress Free
At our events, the first member of the medical team you are likely to encounter will be a First Aider. Our First Aiders continuously patrol the event site from the moment the event opens until it closes, allowing them to respond quickly to minor injuries, illnesses and requests for assistance wherever they are needed.
Our First Responders are strategically positioned at designated medical checkpoints throughout the venue. Their role is to provide a rapid response to more serious incidents, support our patrolling First Aiders and deliver enhanced emergency care while coordinating any additional resources that may be required.
Where available, practitioners educated to FREC 4 level and above will be based within the Medical Centre. They provide advanced assessment and treatment, oversee more complex patients and support the wider medical team when required. If no FREC 4-level practitioner is present at an event, the Medical Centre will instead be staffed by experienced First Responders who will provide care within their scope of practice and escalate to NHS ambulance services whenever necessary.
This deployment model ensures that medical personnel are distributed across the event, allowing for rapid response times while maintaining a dedicated treatment facility for patients requiring further assessment and ongoing care.
Whenever possible, our Medical Centre is positioned close to the main entrance or exit of the event site. This strategic location allows ambulance and emergency service vehicles to access and leave the site quickly and safely, with minimal disruption to the event. It also reduces the distance patients may need to be moved and helps ensure emergency vehicles can enter and exit discreetly, minimising distress or unnecessary concern among other attendees while maintaining a smooth flow of operations.
