Ambulance UK February 2021

NEWSLINE
A 24/7 Air
Ambulance for Wales
The Wales Air Ambulance
has achieved its ambition to
become a 24/7 service thanks
to the donations from the
people of Wales.
The Charity, which will celebrate
its 20th anniversary in 2021,
will start operating an overnight
helicopter from Tuesday, 1
December.
The cost of running the
helicopters during the day
currently stands at £6.5 million
every year. To maintain the
overnight helicopter, Wales
Air Ambulance must raise an
additional £1.5 million, bringing
the annual fundraising total
required for a 24/7 operation to
£8 million.
While the helicopter operation is
supported by the people of Wales
through charitable donations to
the Wales Air Ambulance, the
medical capability on board
the aircraft is delivered thanks
to a unique Third Sector-Public
Sector partnership between the
Charity, Welsh Government and
NHS Wales. In place since 2015,
this collaboration resulted in
the creation of the Emergency
Medical Retrieval and Transfer
Service (EMRTS Cymru), more
commonly known as the ‘Welsh
Flying Medics’, which provides
pioneering pre-hospital critical
and emergency medical care
across Wales. The aviation part
of the service is run by Babcock
Mission Critical Services Onshore
on behalf of the Wales Air
Ambulance.
The need for an overnight Wales
Air Ambulance was identified
following detailed research into life
or limb-threatening emergencies
that took place outside the
services’ operational hours of
8am to 8pm. Over a 12-month
period, there were approximately
990 cases of ‘unmet need’ and
the demand was most prevalent
in South-East Wales.
While plans for the introduction of
the overnight aircraft were being
finalised, a road-based consultant
and critical care practitioner have
been operating between 7pm and
7am every night from the Charity’s
Cardiff Heliport based since July
2020. From 1 December, they will
be joined by a double pilot crew,
allowing them to cover the whole
of Wales.
Minister for Health and Social
Services, Vaughan Gething, said:
I am delighted the Wales Air
Ambulance Service has achieved
its ambition to become a 24/7
service. The introduction of the
overnight helicopter will provide
emergency air cover to more
people who have a clinical need
for immediate treatment across
Wales.
It has been a pleasure to see
the charity go from strength to
strength since its launch on St
David’s Day in 2001. The work of
the charity and its’ hardworking
staff and volunteers has helped
Wales to lead the way in best
practice, clinical excellence and
innovation and contributed to the
charity becoming the largest air
ambulance operation in the UK.
WAA Chairman, David Gilbert
OBE said: At the start of the
year, we said that our aim was
to deliver an overnight helicopter
by the end of 2020. There have
been many years of planning
and preparation with our NHS
and aviation partners to make it a
reality. Despite the challenges of
the pandemic, we felt it was more
important than ever to provide
the people of Wales with a 24/7
lifesaving service.
In 2021, the Charity will mark
20 years of service and what
better way to acknowledge that
milestone than the introduction of
a 24/7 air ambulance operation.
This has been two decades in the
making and we would not be here
without the people of Wales and
their incredible generosity, as well
as our staff and volunteers.
Times are extremely difficult
for everybody, but we’ve been
overwhelmed by the support
we’ve received. We appreciate
that some people may not be able
to continue their support at the
moment, but for those who can,
together we can ensure that we
maintain a 24/7 service and save
lives.
Professor David Lockey, EMRTS
National Director, said: The EDstandard
care we deliver at the
roadside improves the chances
of survival and long-term recovery
from trauma and critical illness.
Our aim has always been to
deliver equity of access to this
advanced pre-hospital critical
care across Wales, regardless
of location or time of day. Our
research has shown that there
is a need for an extended air
ambulance service overnight and
we have already experienced this
demand since the introduction of
our overnight road-based service
in July this year.
This phase of our 24/7 expansion,
the introduction of a Wales Air
Ambulance Charity helicopter, is
a huge step forward for both our
service, and for pre-hospital care
in Wales. This has been made
possible thanks to the ongoing
work and partnership between
the public and third sectors, as
well as the people of Wales who
support the Charity.î
For more information and for
ways to support the Wales Air
Ambulance Charity, please visit
www.walesairambulance.com/247
AMBULANCE UK - FEBRUARY
The Service, which effectively
takes the emergency room
to the patients, is made up of
senior NHS Wales doctors and
critical care practitioners who
can deliver critical emergency
treatments not routinely available
outside the hospital environment.
They include including surgical
procedures, blood transfusions
and emergency anaesthesia.
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For further recruitment vacancies visit: www.ambulanceukonline.com