When people talk about calling to mind the very spirit of prehospital medicine—commitment, sacrifice, and a relentless drive to help others - few stories compare to that of Dr Phil Brown. His route into BASICS (British Association for Immediate Care) wasn’t just unusual; it was extraordinary. It was a journey shaped by family, dedication, and an unwavering belief that he could - and should - make a difference outside hospital walls. From Environmental Health Officer to Emergency Doctor Long before he ever donned a stethoscope, Phil Brown was deeply embedded in another world of public service: environmental health. Rising to Principal Environmental Health Officer and earning an MSc and Chartered status, he had a stable, respected career. But one moment changed everything. The traumatic and poorly handled birth of his first child forced Phil to confront a difficult truth - he was in the wrong profession. He had joined St John Ambulance at 16 and never lost his fascination with medicine and the ambulance service. The spark had always been there; now it roared. And so, with two young children, a mortgage, and a supportive wife who believed in him wholeheartedly, Phil walked away from his comfortable career and into medical school at the Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine. It wasn’t the Caribbean elective and leisurely student life many enjoy - Phil spent his elective at Basildon Ambulance Station, riding out with crews, absorbing everything he could about frontline emergency care. If he was going to be a doctor, he was going to be a BASICS doctor. Born for BASICS From his very first day of full GMC registration in 1999, Phil became operational with the North East Essex Doctors Emergency Service (NEEDES). While most new doctors cautiously find their footing, Phil jumped straight into prehospital care. Within two years he was Chair of the charity - a position he held for a decade. His commitment wasn’t just professional; it was woven into his family life. Phil often responded from his own fully equipped, marked-up car - frequently with his wife Carole and daughter Emily sitting patiently in the passenger seats. They waited through stabbings, road traffic collisions, and countless emergencies. Emily remembers many vividly, including the family’s first shout - straight from a child’s birthday party to a fatal RTC at the Army and Navy roundabout. Even trips to Tesco became potential emergency deployments. Trolleys of shopping would be thrown atop medical kit before tearing off to a call. Firefighters, with trademark good humour, regularly unloaded the shopping while Phil assessed scenes. “BASICS has always been a family thing,” Phil says - and it’s true. For years, Emily volunteered as the paediatric patient in Pre-Hospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) courses taught by Phil, while Carole served as course administrator. Today, Emily is a senior officer with the East of England Ambulance Service - proof that Phil’s passion didn’t just shape his own life, but his family’s future too. Leading Through Change Phil is not just a clinician; he is a builder, a reformer, and a protector of the organisations he serves. When NEEDES faced collapse in 2009, it was Phil who restructured the charity and kept it alive. When the Essex BASICS landscape evolved, he led the merger that created BASICS Essex, becoming its longstanding Medical Director. His influence expanded beyond the charity sector. Phil became a GP with special interest in emergency and unscheduled care, clinical lead for out-of-hours services, an Associate Specialist - and later locum Consultant - in Emergency Medicine at Colchester General Hospital, and Associate Medical Director for the East of England Ambulance Service. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when medication prevented him from performing face-to-face work, he stepped forward to serve in the Ambulance Service control room. There, he helped triage the region’s sickest patients, supported crews on scene, and later took on leadership of the region’s frequent and complex callers. Pioneering Prehospital Medicine Phil’s prehospital achievements read like a timeline of modern BASICS development: First doctor to fly on the Essex Air Ambulance , undertaking more than 75 missions voluntarily. Major incident response training , qualifying as both strategic and tactical medical commander. Participation in numerous exercises including at Stansted Airport , and triaging casualties from the First Gulf War . On-call rota for aircraft hijackings  at Stansted - often involving long, uneventful days taken as unpaid leave. Dozens of courses taught and directed in general practice, emergency medicine, and prehospital care. All of it unpaid. All of it fuelled by passion. A Career Recognised Phil’s work has not gone unnoticed. Among his many honours: Lifetime Achievement Award (2024)  from BASICS UK Fellowship of the Royal College of General Practitioners The Queen’s Golden, Diamond, and Platinum Jubilee Medals The King’s Coronation Medal St John Ambulance Long Service Medal In 2025, he became the 251st President of the historic Colchester Medical Society. A full-circle moment for a man whose path was anything but traditional. Winding Down - But Never Stopping Today, Phil describes himself as “mostly retired,” though the description barely fits. He continues to serve as a trustee for BASICS Essex, works part-time as Associate Medical Director for EEAST, and still responds as a BASICS doctor - though he admits he’s unsure for how much longer. After a lifetime on call, Phil is looking forward to more time in Cyprus, more quiet countryside days, and well-earned rest. But even as he steps back from frontline work, the legacy he leaves is enormous. Thousands of patients have been touched by his actions. Hundreds of clinicians have been shaped by his teaching. Entire services have been strengthened by his leadership. And all of it began with one brave decision: to walk away from a good job because he believed he could do more.

BASICS Essex has long been powered by extraordinary people. Our volunteer clinicians give their time, skill, and compassion to bring advanced medical care to those who need it most, often in the most challenging circumstances. Their dedication is the reason so many lives across Essex have been saved, supported, and changed. As the charity continues to grow, so does the need to strengthen the foundations that support our responders. That’s why we’re delighted to welcome Kim Turner as our new Corporate and Community Fundraising Officer - a role designed not to change what makes BASICS Essex special, but to enhance and protect it for the future. For her, joining BASICS Essex is more than a professional step; it’s deeply personal. She has experienced first‑hand the impact of prehospital care - from losing a young family member in a road traffic collision, to seeing a close friend’s life saved by a similar scheme, to meeting patients whose lives were transformed by clinicians just like ours. These experiences have shaped her belief in the importance of this work and her commitment to supporting those who deliver it. Although she now lives in West Suffolk, she grew up on the Suffolk-Essex border and spent much of her teenage life in and around Colchester. In many ways, joining BASICS Essex feels like a full circle. Alongside her new role, she is the proud mum of two teenage boys, volunteers as a Community First Responder for the ambulance service and co‑runs a green‑waste recycling and tree surgery business in North Norfolk. When she’s not working or responding, she can often be found in her workshop, creating with wood and wire, usually accompanied by her golden retriever, Bramble Her focus at BASICS Essex is simple: to build sustainable fundraising, strengthen awareness, and ensure our clinicians have the resources they need to continue their lifesaving work. With strong foundations and a united team, the future of BASICS Essex looks incredibly bright.

A woman from Chalkwell (Southend-On-Sea) has helped save a life just days after attending a CPR and AED training session delivered by BASICS Essex , highlighting the real and immediate impact of the charity’s voluntary workshop. Nearly half of UK adults (43 %) have never learned CPR, according to British Heart Foundation research. This equates to an estimated 23 million people without basic CPR training. BASICS Essex recently delivered a CPR and AED workshop for members of the Legra Ladies Women’s Institute , based in Leigh On Sea, as part of its Sponsor A Clinician scheme  — an initiative that allows organisations to support the charity’s volunteer emergency clinicians while receiving life-saving CPR and AED and other benefits in return. Just a few days after the session, one of the attendees was travelling through Southend when a member of the public collapsed at the Royal Shopping Centre.   Thanks to the confidence and skills gained during the training, she was able to step in and assist immediately — supported by a nurse and other responders on scene — helping to save the individual’s life until emergency services arrived. The incident powerfully demonstrates how supporting BASICS Essex doesn’t just fund emergency medical response across the county — it directly equips everyday people with the skills to save lives . A spokesperson from the Legra Ladies WI said: “A massive thank you to John and BASICS Essex for providing the CPR training for our group. The events I experienced a couple of days later are a real testament to the importance that everyone should receive CPR training — it can really make a difference when you are least expecting it to.” John Horton, Volunteer Clinician for BASICS Essex, added: “The Sponsor A Clinician scheme allows organisations to see first-hand the impact of their support. CPR is something anyone can do, and early intervention can be lifesaving. Hearing that this training was used in a real emergency just days later shows exactly why this work matters.” What to Do If Someone Collapses (UK Guidance) BASICS Essex encourages everyone to learn basic life-saving skills. If someone collapses and becomes unresponsive in the UK: Check for danger and responsiveness Make sure it is safe to approach. Gently shake their shoulders and ask loudly, “Are you okay?” Call 999 immediately If they are unresponsive and not breathing normally, call 999  (or ask someone nearby to call) and put the phone on loudspeaker. The call handler will guide you. Start chest compressions Push hard and fast in the centre of the chest — around 100–120 compressions per minute . Don’t worry about getting it perfect; doing something is far better than doing nothing. Use an AED if available If there is a public defibrillator nearby, switch it on and follow the spoken instructions. AEDs are safe to use and will only deliver a shock if needed. Continue until help arrives Keep going until the person shows signs of life or emergency services take over. CPR Training Through the Sponsor A Clinician Scheme BASICS Essex delivers CPR and AED workshops exclusively to organisations taking part in its Sponsor A Clinician scheme . These sessions are practical, accessible and designed to give people the confidence to act in a real emergency. By sponsoring a clinician, organisations: Directly support life-saving pre-hospital emergency care across Essex Receive CPR and AED training for their team or members Help spread vital emergency response skills into local communities To learn more about the Sponsor A Clinician scheme, click here.

Would you like to support BASICS Essex? Whether its a Community Fundraiser or Corporate Support , you help will make a BIG difference. Request a Collection Tin To display one of our BASICS Essex collection tins, please email us with your name, address and contact number. Contact Us Corporate Partnerships We are keen to speak with local businessess to discuss how we can work together. Are you in a position to consider making BASICS Essex your 'Charity Of The Year'? Read More Run the TCS London Marathon The London Marathon is the capital's most popular sporting event, with over 50,000 people taking part last year. BASICS Essex has places available for the event. More Info Hold a fundraising event Could you organise a coffee morning, community quiz or challenge event? Dog walks, baking, dinner parties or galas are all wonderful, sociable ways to support us! We'd love to hear from you! Get In Touch Gift Aid Declaration Form For even more ways to get involved, check out our Ways To Donate page Donate

Check out the events we have going on in aid of our charity. EVENTS Run the TCS London Marathon The London Marathon is the capital's most popular sporting event, with over 50,000 people taking part last year. BASICS Essex has places available for the event. More info

Corporate Support Each year our growing team of 25 BASICS Essex volunteer clinicians give their time to provide critical emergency medical care across Essex Communities. Your business, no matter how BIG or SMALL , can help! Charity of the Year, Casual Dress Days, Cake Sales, Quizzes and Challenge Events are all fantastic ways to bring your team together while supporting the ongoing costs of your local emergency medical charity. We are looking to create meaningful partnerships with local companies across Essex and would love to hear from you. If you would like to be part of something truly amazing, please complete the contact form below or email kim.turner@basicsessex.org.uk . Meet our sponsors Sponsor a Clinician What does my business get for sponsoring? Your business will receive a Corporate sponsor listing on BASICS Essex website with logo and link. We will publish several social media posts mentioning your sponsorship during the year. Your sponsored clinician will run a Complimentary company CPR and AED session for your team Your Company logo will be printed on the designated sponsored clinician's hoody. You will receive Monthly updates from clinician and BASICS Essex, in which you are welcome to share with followers Our team can assist with fundraising tactics and ideas! Your business can make a BIG difference , by pledging £1,000 a year (two years minimum) to help a BASICS Essex volunteer clinician provide essential Pre-hospital care across the country. This will help provide crucial funds for PPE, Equipment, and training for your designated volunteer. Tim Anderson BASICS Essex Volunteer “Putting my skills and experience as a Paramedic to use in supporting the care of people in Essex as a BASICS Essex volunteer has been an excellent way to give back to my community. Your corporate sponsorship helps fund PPE, essential equipment and training costs to support our scheme." James Samouelle BASICS Essex Volunteer “Working in the ambulance service, I had a loose understanding of what BASICS Essex was, but it wasn’t until I saw a roadside incident close to home that I began to realise I could do more to support my local community, and that’s why I joined the scheme.” Learn more about our volunteers and the rest of the team here Nick Sillett BASICS Essex Volunteer “When I received an invitation to a patient reunion, I was astounded. Meeting them was really rather emotional and I felt privileged to have played a very small part in their care and recovery. This case still motivates me to volunteer for BASICS Essex to this very day.” Get in touch and support BASICS Essex Today First name* Last name Company name Email* Phone Write a message Submit