About us
The Herts and Beds SERV group of Blood Runners, was formed 2009. We are part of a nationwide voluntary organisation that provides a free out of hours delivery service for blood products and patient samples, as well as Human Donor Milk, medical equipment and drugs.
We provide a service to the main hospitals in our region, as well as Hospices and Milk Banks.
History of SERV
SERV stands for Service by Emergency Response Volunteers. It was founded in 1981 and has saved NHS Hospitals thousands of pounds which has enabled hospitals to divert funds where they are needed most. Originally the naming was 'Rider' volunteers, but in recent years we are very much using both cars and motorcycles for our services, in the most part that is the bikes and cars owned by, fuelled by and insured by our volunteers.
There are a number of similar groups operating countrywide.
Each group performs a similar service, using motorcycles or cars to provide an out-of-hours 'medical essentials' service to hospitals and other health institutions within their area. The charities carry urgently needed medical items such as blood, biological samples, medical notes, x-rays and scans. The service is offered free of charge to the NHS and all members are unpaid volunteers.
Blood Products
We provide a totally free out-of-hours voluntary service for NHS hospitals in the Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire area. We are on call every day of the year, 24 hours a day, and througout all public holidays.
Frozen Breast Milk
Premature babies can need breast milk when they are born as they may be unable to digest anything else. Mothers with premature babies or who have undergone medical treatment often are not able to express their milk.
Donors express and freeze milk and our riders collect the frozen milk and deliver it to the Milk Bank where it is processed and held in storage and eventually supplied to Neonatal Units as required.
Hospice Support
Hospice provides palliative care to patients 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We provide an as-required collection and delivery services between the hospice and local hospitals transporting drugs, blood transfusions, medical equipment, patient notes and medical samples.