St. John Ambulance

Infobox Organization
name = St John Ambulance Foundation

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size =
caption = St John Ambulance Foundation logo

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mcaption = Countries with national organizations affiliated to SJA
abbreviation = SJA
motto = Pro Fide Pro Utilitate Hominum (Latin for "For the Faith" and "In the Service of Humanity")
formation = 1877
type =
status =
purpose = Medical care, humanitarian relief, youth programmes
headquarters = Priory House, 25 St John's Lane, Clerkenwell, London EC1M 4PP, England, United Kingdom
location =
region_served =
membership = 39 national organizations
main_organ =
parent_organization = Order of St John
affiliations = Johanniter International
num_staff =
num_volunteers = 250,000
budget =
website = http://www.orderofstjohn.org
remarks =

St John Ambulance, branded as St John in some territories, is a common name used by a number of affiliated organizations in different countries dedicated to the teaching and practice of medical first aid and the provision of ambulance services, all of which derive their origins from the St John Ambulance Association founded in 1877 in England. Each national group falls within the charge of a Priory or National Council of the Venerable Order of Saint John in which each Priory ranks alongside the others.

In several priories St John Ambulance has commercial sections or subsidiaries operating to generate surplus for charitable activities, these are structured much like other commercial bodies. The membership aspect of St John Ambulance is largely ranked, and members fall into a hierarchical structure of command. Ranks run from corporals, through sergeants and officers all the way up to high national ranks, but there is significant variation between Priories and it is hard to generalise the structure too much from an international perspective.

Most members of St John Ambulance are not themselves members of the Order, and vice versa, so a major presence of the Order does not dictate a major presence of St John Ambulance. Most notably, the Order of St John is a Christian organization, whereas St John Ambulance is keen to ensure there is no allegiance to any particular religion or denomination, so as to remain available to all. St John Ambulance works on a more geographical nature than the Order, and has to contend with the differing national laws, medical practices and cultures of countries.

National and regional

The legal status of each organization varies by country, in both England and Wales the resident St John Ambulance organizations are simultaneously but separately registered as charities and companies; differently, St John Ambulance South Africa (for the sake of example) is a distinct entity registered as a "public benefit organization".

Due to the significant differences between St John Ambulance in different countries, separate articles are provided for each independent presence:
*St John Ambulance Australia
*St. John Ambulance in Canada
*St. John Ambulance in England and Wales
*St. John Ambulance in Hong Kong
*St. John Ambulance in India
*St. John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland
*St. John Ambulance of Malaysia
*St John New Zealand
*St. John Ambulance in Singapore
*St. John Ambulance in Sri Lanka
*St John Ambulance in British Forces Overseas

Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem

Another foundation the Order of St. John maintains is the Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem, which provides comprehensive patient care and nursing treatment to sufferers from eye disease in the Jerusalem region.

Name and mottoes

In formal British English, where the Order of St John is based, St is the abbreviated form of Saint, whilst St. is the abbreviation of Street. Corporate and National logos began to reflect this as a change from St. (with the dot) in 2006-7. Fact|date=July 2008

The unusual name of the organization has been known to cause confusion to members of the public, and many people often assume that the "St John" prefix indicates a church related organization. In fact, in its modern form, the prefix refers to the Order of St. John (which in fact is a religious organization) and is used as an adjective. However, it is often assumed to be used as a noun, and this leads to the organization being frequently incorrectly termed "St John's Ambulance", a long standing source of irritation to some members. This is further perpetuated since members on duty are often referred to collectively as "St John's". In terms of the Order, the original allegiance was to John the Baptist; this allegiance is not however inherited by St John Ambulance.

The order's mottoes are "Pro fide" (For the faith) and "Pro utilitate hominum" (For the service of mankind). The 'Priory of England and The Islands' has recently replaced the Latin mottoes with a single English sentence: "For the faith and in the service of humanity", which some see as a controversial move. However in December 2006 it was agreed by Priory Council that this move should be partially reversed and the Latin mottoes were reintroduced in the Cadet Code of Chivalry.

tructure of the Order

The order is not to be confused with the Sovereign Military Order of Malta or other members of the Alliance of the Orders of St. John of Jerusalem. There are also "copycat" organizations using the St John name which are not generally recognised by members of the Alliance of Orders of St. John.

International

Falling under the direction of the Order of St John, St John Ambulance mirrors the structure of the Order. The Order is divided internationally into Priories, reflecting the monastic history of the original Knights Hospitaller. However, these modern priories are not monastic in nature and are used purely as terminology within the organization. Eight priories are prescribed by the [http://www.orderofstjohn.org/pdf/regs2003.pdf Order of St John Regulations] :

* The Priory of England and The Islands
* The Priory of Scotland
* The Priory in Australia
* The Priory of Canada
* The Priory in New Zealand
* The Priory for South Africa
* The Priory in the United States of America
* The Priory for Wales

The Priory of England and The Islands is the home priory of the Order, and any country which does not belong to its own dedicated priory is assumed into this home priory. Most of these are small Commonwealth islands, or countries in which there is only a minor presence.

That said, the relationship between the Order of St. John and St. John Ambulance is not directly paralleled. This explains somewhat why a breakdown into Priories may not be tantamount to a breakdown of St John Ambulance.

Key dates

*1511: The young King Henry VIII was named protector of the Order .
*1540: The English branch of the Order of St John, the Knights Hospitallers, property is confiscated by Henry VIII.
*1826: An idea to re-establish the Order within England is put forward by some remaining French Knights of the original worldwide Order.
*1841: The "St John's Day Declaration" is prepared, seeking official recognition of the new English Order by the original Order, now known as SMOM.
*10 July 1877: St John Ambulance Association formed to teach first-aid in large railway centres and mining districts.
*June 1887: St John Ambulance Brigade is formed as a uniformed organization to provide a First Aid and Ambulance services at public events.
*14 May 1888: English Order of St John is granted royal charter by Queen Victoria.
*1908: By mutual agreement with St Andrew's Ambulance Association, St John Ambulance Association ceased operating in Scotland but the Order continued to operate.
*1999 The Order of St John celebrated its 900th anniversary worldwide

ee also

*Order of St John (Protestant Continental Europe)
*Order of St John
*St John Ambulance Ranks and Insignia
*Service Medal of the Order of St John

External links

* [http://www.orderofstjohn.org/index.php?page=st-john-ambulance St John Ambulance] - official website
* [http://flagspot.net/flags/int-stja.html The flag of St John Ambulance in 1999]
* [http://www.sja.org.uk/ St John Ambulance (England and Northern Ireland)]
* [http://www.stjohnwales.org.uk/ St John Cymru - Wales]
* [http://www.sjatraining.com/ St John Ambulance Online Training (Canada)]
* [http://www.stjohnscotland.org.uk/ Order of St John, Priory of Scotland]
* [http://www.sja.ie/ St John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland ]
* [http://www.stjohnambulance.ie/ St John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland - Southern Command]
* [http://www.stjohn.org.hk/en/ St John Ambulance in Hong Kong]
* [http://www.sjam.org.my St John Ambulance of Malaysia]
* [http://www.stjohnnsw.com.au/default.html New South Wales, Australia]
* [http://www.stjohnsrilanka.org St. John Ambulance - Sri Lanka ]
* [http://www.stjohnambulance.co.za/default.asp St John Ambulance, South Africa]