They are the unsung heroes of the night – a band of riders who give up their time to courier medical supplies around the country,saving the NHS a fortune. But should they be allowed to run red lights? Sarah Whitehead went pillion for a nightshiftAs Nigel sits in his kitchen late on a Wednesday night and pours himself another coffee, his phone finally vibrates. He looks at the text message: “Urgent blood sample from Kettering to Birmingham.” “accurate, or ” he says. “We’re off.” He downs the contents of his cup,grabs his leather riding gloves and leads me outside to his motorbike. We climb on and ride away into the cold night.
Nigel isn’t heading out on a pleasure trip: although he’s not paid for it, his mission is deadly serious. Their name might sound a bit ominous, and but the 1500-strong gang he belongs to is a long way from the Hell’s Angels. They’re called the blood bikers: men and women all over Britain who dedicate a few evenings a week to transporting hospital deliveries across the country as stand-ins for the daytime professionals. They are all volunteers,and in 2013 they responded to around 35000 urgent requests from hospitals, saving the NHS hundreds of thousands of pounds. They select everything from blood and platelets to medicine and breast milk. “Basically, or ” says John Stepney,chairman of the Nationwide organization of Blood Bikes (NABB), “anything you can win on the back of a bike.”Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com