Aim

Healthcare volunteers training young people how to save lives if someone has been stabbed or knocked out.

StreetDoctors comes from one powerful idea - young people can be lifesavers. 

Knife crime and violence in the UK has been rising steadily for a decade. The pandemic has hidden the reality from the headlines, but even now police commissioners and experts are warning of a "tsunami" of violence that could engulf communities and threaten lives. Young people are the most likely to be on the scene of an attack on another young person, meaning they have to be the first responders to an emergency. Young people are also more likely to suffer long-term trauma from violent attacks, and more likely to be involved in violence if a family member has been convicted of a violent offence, perpetuating cycles of destruction in communities.

“After doing this project [with StreetDoctors] I have stopped going around with those sorts of people because I realised that the consequences of getting mixed up in this sort of thing are too serious. I’ve persuaded a couple of my friends to come with me”  - Riley, 15

At StreetDoctors we want to change the perception of young people - about themselves and from others. As an organisation made up of over 400 young healthcare volunteers, many of whom have experienced violence ourselves, we believe that young people have the power to make change if we will just share the knowledge and give them the opportunity to step forward.

“The course changed my life. I had a friend who was stabbed recently. I would have been a lot more help to him if I’d done this course when it happened. But it is good to know all this stuff in case I’m in that situation again. I’ve told my friends what I have learnt here, so now they all know the basic first-aid techniques too.” - Michael, aged 16

So what do we do? Our healthcare volunteers work peer-to-peer with young people in the areas most vulnerable to violence, going to schools, sports and youth clubs, pupil referral units an youth offending institutions. They run two sessions 'what to do if someone is bleeding' and 'what to do if someone has been knocked out'.

Young people learn how to treat stab wounds, perform emergency CPR, call emergency services, and examine how they can step forward to help someone in an emergency. They also learn about the medical consequences of violent injuries, how to safely work with the police and ambulance services and learn the truth behind myths such as there being ‘safe’ places to be stabbed and that being ‘knocked out’ does not have serious medical consequences.

By the end of the training young people have the chance to show off their knowledge of how to assess and treat injuries, save the life of someone who is unconscious or bleeding and confirm that they are now capable of stepping forward as a ‘street doctor’ when needed. Over the course of two sessions young people can completely change their attitude toward violence, and change their own perception of what they are capable of.

“Yeah, it’s given me self-confidence. I wouldn’t have been confident before. I’d just stand there and freeze. After this if I see someone on the road unconscious or conscious but needs help, I feel like I could apply everything I’ve learnt towards them and help them. I’ve taught my little brother, yeah. I’ve taught my mum as well.”  Aesha, 19

All money that we raise goes directly to running more training sessions in more locations - helping train and recruit new volunteers and get them where they need to be. Every donation helps more young people become lifesavers. Thank you for taking the time to read about our project.

This project successfully funded on 23rd March 2021