Ambulance UK August 2021

NEWSLINE
WYMRT
West Yorkshire
Medic Response
Team launch
lifesaving vehicle
The West Yorkshire Medic
Response Team (WYMRT),
a specialist pre-hospital
emergency trauma crew, who, in
their spare time, responded to
266 serious medical and trauma
cases across West Yorkshire last
year, has launched a new BMW
X5 emergency response vehicle.
It was made possible after the
group successfully bid for a
total of £41,220 from a pot of
£250,000, which is given to the
British Association for Immediate
Care every year by the County
Air Ambulance HELP Appeal -
the only charity in the country
dedicated to funding NHS
hospital helipads.
The BMW, which has been
converted with blue lights,
sirens, navigation technology
and cameras will now be active
across Leeds, West Yorkshire
and beyond, carrying volunteer
medical teams, consisting of
senior doctors and paramedics,
to the scene of critically ill or
injured patients in the community
or at the roadside. This new car
replaces a Volvo XC70, which has
been in use since 2013.
WYMRT is one of a network of
schemes across the UK, which
operates under the umbrella of the
British Association for Immediate
Care – a national organisation. It
currently has 35 active responders,
including 15 trainees, who were
dispatched 266 times last year. Of
these, 159 were active jobs, with
WYMRT being first on the scene
in a quarter of these cases. The
key reasons for call outs were,
road traffic accidents (77 cases),
long falls (19 cases), stabbings
(14 cases) and cardiac arrest (13
cases).
In December 2020, after the
County Air Ambulance HELP
Appeal’s presented its second
annual £250,000 donation
to the British Association for
Immediate Care, WYMRT was
also successful in securing an
additional £15,369.55. This has
enabled them to buy ten new PPE
uniforms, equip its garage base
with laundry facilities to wash
uniforms after every incident,
purchase new crew responder
helmets and also winter tyres for
existing responder vehicles.
WYMRT Chair, Dr Andy
Pountney said: “The support
given to WYMRT by the HELP
Appeal has been tremendous and
many patients in West Yorkshire
have received this valuable
specialist care and attention by
Doctors at scene. The work has
also helped both Doctors and
Paramedics to understand the
important roles played by each
other in this type of work.”
Robert Bertram, Chief Executive
of the County Air Ambulance
HELP Appeal added: “These
volunteers are the unsung
heroes of emergency care. This
important addition to their fleet of
cars and new PPE uniforms are
in recognition of their lifesaving
work - all carried out in their spare
time - supporting local ambulance
crews faced with hugely complex
incidents, where people’s lives
are at serious risk. This new car
will help these volunteers to reach
incidents quickly and safely to
help treat patients and give them
the best possible chance of
survival and recovery.”
The HELP Appeal was created
12 years ago by the County Air
Ambulance Trust. It is the only
charity in the country dedicated
to funding NHS hospital helipads
including at Leeds General
Infirmary which has state of the art
lighting, to enable air ambulance
take offs and landings at night
and a firefighting system, thanks
to a £132,000 donation from the
charity.
To date it has funded 45 helipads,
which have received over 17,750
landings. The HELP Appeal relies
solely on charitable donations and
does not receive any government
funding or money from the
National Lottery.
A WORLD OF COMFORT
AMBULANCE UK - AUGUST
CLIMATE
CONTROLLED
HEALTHCARE
Simple to use, effective in performance and reliable in
operation. The Eberspächer climate control system.
On the move comfort for patient and healthcare
professionals.
See us at THE EMERGENCY FLEET EXH. Stand 42
and THE EMERGENCY SERVICES SHOW Stand H31
118
| WWW.EBERSPACHER. COM
TEL: 01425 480151