About

About Article 999 for Medics

How do you answer a question when there are five different answers as you go around the crew room asking?

How do you answer a question when the answers you find are relevant to guidelines in other countries, to doctors, or are outdated?

How do you, if you’re surrounded by ‘old-school’ staff telling you you’re wrong and this is the ‘right’ way (actual experience) feel confident that you have the right information – or that there isn’t just one right answer, or that so many others don’t know the answer either?

How do you choose CPD, and not feel overwhelmed, when there is now so much of it out there, and so little time?

How do you log CPD from a non-registered staff member right the way through to a Paramedic post-NQP period, simply and for free?

Does any of this sound familiar?

Learning and revision could be made a lot easier. So could logging CPD. In fact, so could health promotion for our patients.

There are now fantastic CPD resources out there. In fact, there are so many of them I’m inundated, aren’t you? Not many are specifically for us and many charge. It’s hard to find an easy to locate, free, directly relevant simple answer – and one that is referenced.

Article 999 aims to fill this gap. We provide:

  • Simple questions and simple answers, with the option to read, watch or listen to more if you wish.
  • Summaries of longer guidelines and books.
  • Referenced content
  • An expanding library of videos
  • CPD templates  produced by Louise because so few CPD logs/apps/sites are designed specifically for the needs of Paramedics, and so many are costly or clunky
  • 1-1 support to set up your CPD templates and manage any technical issues.
  • Patient Voices – a new way of learning about rare conditions our patients may have by seeing posts written from their perspective.
  • Expanding databases of references and their learning points, as well as charities/organisations, many of which accept referrals from you to support your patients.

What will keep us different is our ability to provide tons of free content (the majority of our content will never be behind a membership wall), free CPD templates, 1:1 mentoring, summarised content to prevent CPD from feeling overwhelming when we all have so little time, and referenced content – on Article 999 you will always know where the published information for factual posts has come from. And we’ll be transparent about who we are and what our qualifications are, too.

Article 999 is for all operational and non-operational staff, so that means Paramedics, NQPs, AAPs, EMTs, students, and equivalent roles to each of these titles, in whatever speciality you are working in or wish to move to. We’re filling up with content and with content formats. We’ve now been shared by both the College of Paramedics and East of England Ambulance Service.

Start by browsing the home page, or use the search box below

Don’t forget to read our disclaimer

About the Creator

Louise Sopher is a Paramedic, Resuscitation Practitioner, and Resuscitation Council ALS & EPALS Instructor based in Hertfordshire. She holds mentoring and teaching qualifications and is completing a masters module in medical education. She has been a registered Paramedic since 2017. View her LinkedIn here.

Beginnings

Article 999 (originally PopUpAmbo) was created by Louise in 2016 when, as a Student Ambulance Paramedic and EMT, she was frustrated by how difficult it was to find information specifically for Paramedics. At the time, few resources existed online, and the few Paramedic-specific textbooks were starting to go out of date. It was difficult to know where to find an answer to a question and to confirm she was recollecting something correctly. It also appeared to be difficult for qualified staff to refresh themselves on a piece of equipment due to time-constraints.

And sometimes, practicing with equipment isn’t enough… Is there anything else I should know about this? 

2022 Onwards

Today there is information overload. There is so much CPD, and tracking blog posts back to their original references isn’t always easy. There are also so many online modules, there are audiobooks and YouTube videos, and lectures on e-learning platforms… And there goes my free time. 

Article 999 is focusing on the need for summaries, simple questions and answers, video libraries and additional tools like CPD templates for Paramedics. The site is also expanding to support patients. Have a look at the next tabs for more information. 

Become a Content Creator

Roles for HCPC-Registered HCPs. 

Are you an HCPC-Registered Healthcare Professional in the UK? Are you interested in creating content for other HCPs, particularly Paramedics, NQPs, AAPs, EMTs, and students? Are you able to summarise a topic and reference it accordingly, in Harvard format? Are you a Consultant Paramedic and keen to oversee or peer review our content?

Please email article999uk[at]gmail[dot]com or send Louise a message on our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram pages and let her know:

  • Your role
  • Your HCPC number
  • Your background – how long have you been qualified? Are you working frontline/in primary care/in events or film work?
  • Why you’re keen to contribute and how often you would like to do so
  • Any topics you’re interested in or have special knowledge of
  • Any formats you prefer – videos, podcasts, images, text?
  • Anything else you would like us to know about you.
  • A short bio that we can add to your posts, and a photo to go with it. We will also ask for your permission to add this information to a Contributor page.

This is currently a voluntary role.

Roles for Doctors 

Are you a qualified and registered Doctor in the UK? Are you interested in contributing content for other HCPs, mainly Paramedics, students, and AAPs/EMTs? Is there a topic you think this audience should really know more about? Are you interested in peer reviewing or overseeing our content? We’re looking for content producers and medical directors to add to our site and ensure our content is up-to-date.

Email article999uk[at]gmail[dot]com or message Louise on our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram pages. Please let her know:

  • Your role
  • Your GMC number
  • Your background – how long have you been qualified/what’s your current grade? In what sector are you working?
  • Why you’re keen to contribute and how often you would like to do so
  • Any topics you are interested in or have special knowledge of
  • If you’d like to contribute:
    • Any formats you prefer – videos/podcasts/images/text
  • If you’d like to oversee or peer review:
    • How many posts you think you can review each month
  • Anything else you would like us to know about you
  • A short bio that we can add to your posts, and a photo to go with it. We will also ask for your permission to add this information to a Contributor page.

This is currently a voluntary role.

Roles for Physios, Osteopaths, Biology Teachers, and Anyone Else With Specialist Interests in Anatomy and Physiology

Are you interested in contributing referenced posts in any format – text, photos, videos, audio – about anatomy and physiology for the benefit of healthcare professionals and patients? If so, please email us at article999uk[at]gmail[dot]com or message us on our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram pages. Let us know:

  • Your role and how long you have been in that role
  • Your background – if you’re a teacher, what age group do you teach? If you’re a physio or osteopath, do you work with the NHS or for a company?
  • Any topics of specialist interest
  • Why you would like to contribute, and how often
  • A short bio that we can add to your posts, and a photo to go with it. We will also ask for your permission to add this information to a Contributor page.

Your posts will be of huge benefit to medics and patients alike. We are aiming to improve health literacy for patients, and because you are used to communicating healthcare and science, your background is really useful. Because you are experts on anatomy, students and qualified medics will also benefit from your knowledge. In return, Article 999 offers you a platform to share links to your website or blog and, for physios and osteopaths, an opportunity to extend your own CPD by learning about specific patient groups via our Patient Voices platform. These patients may also benefit from knowing which physios and osteopaths have special interests and experience in dealing with their conditions, and they are welcome to contact you for appointments.

This is currently a voluntary role.

Roles for Patients

Are you a patient with a rare condition? Perhaps your condition isn’t rare, but you feel healthcare professionals will benefit from more knowledge of the physical and mental effects of it. You might be someone who has just been diagnosed with a condition and is currently navigating the treatment options. You might be someone who has had this condition your whole life but has achieved incredible things despite it. Or, you might be someone who has survived cancer, or perhaps you are a family member of a palliative care patient or an ageing dementia patient and, with their permission, you would like to share your experiences as a family so that others know what help to seek and when or where to seek it. You are welcome to contribute for us in whatever form you prefer – text/video/audio/image.

We believe your contributions will educate healthcare professionals. We also hope that through using this site, we can help you to understand what skillsets Paramedics have and what resources are available to you so that you can seek help when you need it, and seek the most appropriate help in your moment of need.

If you are interested, please email article999uk[at]gmail[dot]com with:

  • A little about you – What conditions have you been diagnosed with, which you would also like to write about? What have your experiences of this/these condition(s) been?
  • Why you would like to contribute, how often you would like to do so, and in what formats.
  • A short bio that we can add to your posts, and a photo to go with it. We will also ask for your permission to add this information to a Contributor page.

This is currently a voluntary role.

For all Contributors

Please note, all healthcare professionals must reference their posts unless it is clearly stated that it is an opinion post. Patients do not have to reference their posts. No contributions will be published if they include any form of hate or generalisations or stereotypes. Patients, even if you have had negative experiences of healthcare, please remain open in your contributions to the reasons behind this and the limits of Paramedic practice, and focus on education.  

Don’t forget to read our disclaimer for medics and for patients

About Article 999 for patients

Information for Patients

The problem:

42% of working-age adults are unable to understand and make use of everyday health information, rising to 61% when numeracy skills are also required for comprehension

Public Health England (2015)

We as Paramedics are frequently offering advice on what to do when you have a high temperature and basic first aid.

A lot of information out there is either too detailed or presented in a complex way, using terminology that studies, such as the European Health Literacy Survey, have shown too many people find difficult to understand.

The solution. I’m hoping:

  • to break this trend with short videos about minor ailments that can be used to complement health information you receive from elsewhere.
  • to help you manage your symptoms more easily & seek help using the most efficient means when you need it.

The risk – and the reason Article 999 is not going to diagnose you:

There is always a risk when it comes to giving medical advice, which is why the majority of symptom checkers are complex, risk-adverse, and often scary (anything, and everything = cancer in most symptom checkers). That’s why this site is not a symptom checker, or a site for specific medical advice. Article 999 aims to help you understand and manage your symptoms, not diagnose you. 

Questions

How do I know I can trust this information?

  • Made by an HCPC Registered (and practicing) Paramedic
  • Peer reviewed by other HCPC Registered Paramedics
  • Informed by research & real-life experience
  • Referenced

Are you a company? Who funds you?

Nope, just a website run by a Paramedic, without funding or sponsorship. If this changes, I’ll update this answer.

Can I share the videos?

Yes, please do – but any shares must be accompanied by the article link. All articles and videos are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International. 

This license requires that reusers give credit to the creator. It allows reusers to copy and distribute the material in any medium or format in unadapted form only, even for commercial purposes.

I am a patient/member of the public. Can I contact you for medical advice?

Sadly, due to a whole combination of grey area legalities, I’m unable to offer direct medical advice, and these requests will not be responded to.

I am an HCP and I have a question or suggestion.

No worries, go ahead and contact me.

Is there anything else I should be aware of?

Yes. Please read our disclaimer and the accompanying information with each video/article you access.

I hope the project is helpful and informative. If there are any concerns, please let me know in the comment boxes.

Louise Sopher
HCPC Registered Paramedic,
Hertfordshire

Mission Statement

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