Nineteen Charles Sturt University (CSU) paramedic graduates have been offered employment with the London Ambulance Service (LAS) in the UK and will start work in January 2015.

Mr Philip Walker, lecturer in pre-hospital care in the CSU School of Biomedical Sciences in Bathurst, said, "These graduates are ready for the next step and this is an opportunity of a lifetime for them. This is also an opportunity for the University to build on the existing relationships with services such as the LAS, and is another example of how Charles Sturt University prepares graduate paramedics to work not only in Australia but across the globe."

Mr Walker explained that the LAS undertook its biggest international recruitment of qualified paramedics in September this year. It conducted interviews in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, and New Zealand, and offered approximately 250 positions to paramedics from all over Australia.

The LAS is one of the busiest emergency medical services in the world and handles over 1.5 million ambulance calls per year and rising. It employs more than 5 000 staff, operates more than 70 ambulance stations across central and suburban London, and on average the service is 25 per cent busier than other UK ambulance services. The LAS deals with a range of medical and traumatic emergencies with a diverse range of cultures, and has seen an increase in demand for ambulances of more than 12 per cent in the last four years.

"They need more paramedics and we have high-calibre graduates who study a paramedic degree that prepares them for working as a paramedic in many countries around the world," Mr Walker said.

"I organised for the students to undertake some LAS-specific training at the University and to speak with serving paramedics in the LAS via video conference. The students applied, and went for testing. The LAS was extremely impressed with the quality of the Charles Sturt University paramedic graduates and offered all 19 graduate applicants a position. The Director of Operations for the LAS, Mr Jason Killens, commented on the quality and integrity of the Charles Sturt University paramedic students during the recruitment campaign.

"This is an excellent opportunity for graduates from our Bachelor of Clinical Practice (Paramedic) to gain valuable extensive experience in pre-hospital care working with one of the busiest services in the world, and to pursue a rewarding career in the ambulance service."

The students will undergo a further six months intensive training with the LAS, covering areas such as working in the London Underground, Heathrow Airport, and London City, and will have opportunities to work with HART teams (hazardous area response teams) which were created after the London Bombings.

The LAS recruitment process will continue for another four to five years, and the LAS is already making plans to recruit more CSU graduates as early as March 2015.

"This is the start of a very interesting relationship between Charles Sturt University and the LAS," Mr Walker said. "In addition, we are currently working on a Memorandum of Understanding with the LAS that would see us having clinical placements in London, them coming to Charles Sturt University campuses to recruit our students, and also future opportunities for research and joint education. The team at the Charles Sturt University School of Biomedical Sciences is extremely proud to offer such opportunities."