Volunteer doctors fronting fuel costs to ensure people of Bristol and surrounding counties receive emergency treatment

A Bristol-based team of critical care doctors who work full time for the NHS are then working after hours to support people in Bristol, Bath, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire with treatments that can be the difference between life and death.

On top of that, they are having to contribute to fuel out of their own pockets due to soaring prices at the pumps.

Bristol-based Bravo Medics saves lives in the local community by sending highly trained critical care doctors to the very sickest of patients to support the local ambulance service.

These doctors, who all work full time for the NHS, volunteer in their own family time and are on call to drive on blue lights to the scene of accidents or medical emergencies where they provide hospital level care, which would otherwise be unavailable, and can mean the difference between life and death.

Mileage expense claims are limited to 0.45p per mile. Driving on 'blue light' comes with increased baseline costs but soaring fuel prices are forcing these heroes to cover the difference themselves, something they're more than happy to do.

Dr Andrew Heavyside, one of the volunteers at Bravo Medics, commented:

We attend cardiac arrests, premature labours and traumas like car accidents and stabbings. Some scenes will stay with me forever because they were so horrific. But I do this because people deserve the best critical care when they need it. The cost of everything is increasing from medicines, uniforms to specialist equipment. It's only right that we fund the difference ourselves so we can continue."