A former front line combat medic awarded the DZ Award For Bravery in Afghanistan has found a way of putting her unique experiences to good use in a new role with one of the UK’s most innovative training companies.
Francesca Burrows served on tours in Iraq and Afghanistan during 12 years of service with the Army. She has now joined Call of the Wild, a multi-award winning management and leadership development company based in Neath, South Wales, as a training executive delivering first aid and leadership qualifications.
Call of the Wild has ambitious expansion plans for the next 18 months, which has resulted in the firm hiring several new staff. Francesca joins the firm’s compliance team to deliver first aid training to companies in addition to working on leadership development with existing clients.
The company has seen demand for first aid training increase. Though numbers are falling due to better health & safety, there were an estimated 621,000 non-fatal and 144 fatal injuries to workers in 2015/16, according to the last Labour Force Survey, resulting in 4.5 million working days lost for UK businesses.
Francesca was awarded the DZ Award For Bravery after the military vehicle she was travelling in with colleagues was blown up. Ignoring her own injuries, she treated those around her in a more critical condition. The DZ Award For Bravery is given in memory of Ella Dlugosz (known as DZ), who was killed in Iraq in 2007. She was one of the British Army’s youngest female soldiers to die on active duty.
Francesca never lost a military casualty under her care during her tours of duty. She was eventually promoted to teaching all new soldiers entering Afghanistan (over 200 a day) and became the first response medic responsible for the medical training of 350 soldiers. In 2015, she was promoted to senior manager, responsible for the medical service and support of 550 infantry soldiers. She left the army in 2016.
Francesca said:
“I joined Call of the Wild because of their values and standards. After being in the military for 12 years you get very used to a family feel and this company gave me that. The support and professionalism of the company shone through and is something I wanted to align myself to. I am really looking forward to the challenge ahead developing the first aid offer and working on leadership programmes.”
Geraint Lewis, Managing Director of Call of the Wild, said:
“We spend a significant amount of time when recruiting looking for individuals who fit our company culture. We’re lucky to have appointed such an outstanding individual who will make a valuable contribution to achieving our growth plans over the next 18 months.
“Francesca is an excellent addition to the team with her military combat medic experience, her military commendations for bravery and top level commander awards. An authentic individual, she is not just a trainer but brings real world inspirational experience to our programmes for our clients to benefit from.”