AMBULANCE crews in Hertfordshire provided a good quality service, says a report from the Healthcare Commission. The annual check scored each NHS Trust on aspects of its performance throughout the year. The Beds and Herts Ambulance and Paramedic Service

AMBULANCE crews in Hertfordshire provided a "good" quality service, says a report from the Healthcare Commission.

The annual check scored each NHS Trust on aspects of its performance throughout the year.

The Beds and Herts Ambulance and Paramedic Service - which is now part of the East of England Ambulance Service - scored "good" on quality of services and "fair" on use of resources.

Dr Chris Carney, chief executive of the new East of England Ambulance Service, said the report was "a testament to the skills and dedication" of the staff and management of the service.

He said that the new ambulance service covering Beds and Herts, as well as Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk, will face "challenges" in the future.

Under charges next year, response times will start as soon as a 999 call is connected to ambulance control.

Dr Carney said the service had submitted performance plans to the Department of Heath and in future it will have to "find ways of working smarter."

He added: "From now on we will be looking at developments of our staff in providing even wider ranges of care.

"There will be new career developments for paramedics, new ways of responding to calls and the wider use of emergency care practitioners.