BRIGG AREA ENJOYS LIFE-SAVING SERVICE FROM LINCS & NOTTS AIR AMBULANCE

FROM KAREN JOBLING, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

While most of us will be celebrating Christmas with family and friends, the crew of the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance will be on duty as usual, should anyone need us.  
Available both day and night, 365 days a year, our highly skilled team of Doctors, Paramedics and Pilots can be at the scene of an incident within minutes, ready to deliver the same level of care that you would expect from a hospital emergency department.
Every week I hear inspiring, heart-warming stories from people whose lives our air ambulance has touched. One such story that springs to mind is of a cyclist we treated earlier this year. He received significant life-threatening injuries after a collision with a car. He was treated by our crew before being flown to Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham. Thanks to the treatment he received at the roadside by our highly-trained paramedics and doctor, he was able to walk out of hospital just a week later. Four months on, he visited our airbase to thank the crew who saved his life and ensured that his 18-month-old son still had a dad. It was a very emotional reunion for all involved – including our crew.
So far this year, we have undertaken 988 missions, 41% of these being serious road traffic collisions. We also attend many other incidents such as cardiac arrests, sporting injuries, agricultural and farming incidents and falls, including calls to babies and young children. Many families still have parents, children, brothers and sisters thanks to our Charity.
As 2016 draws to a close, the Charity is gearing up for the imminent arrival of our new helicopter – the AgustaWestland 169. This amazing aircraft is our most technologically advanced to date. It is bigger than our current aircraft – enabling the crew to have 360-degree access to the patient in flight; it will be faster – able to reach the far corners of our two counties in under 20 minutes; and has greater endurance, enabling us to fly from job to job without refuelling as often.
As well as a new aircraft, we continually look to improve the level of care our clinicians can bring to emergency AW1situations by investing in the very latest medical technologies. For example, we recently introduced a top of the range, portable ultrasound to our kit of life-saving equipment. On its very first outing, our crew was able to use it to successfully detect a very weak heart beat in a patient. This patient’s heartbeat was so feint that it would not have been detected by conventional means. Using the ultrasound at the roadside, enabled our clinicians to quickly and effectively treat the patient at the road side before transporting to hospital in the fastest time possible, greatly impacting on their chances of survival and recovery.
It costs over £2.1million a year to keep the helicopter. This is only achieved thanks to the support we receive from the people of Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire so a heartfelt thank you for your support during the year.
I wish everyone a safe and Happy Christmas and a peaceful 2017.
For more information on the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance or to make a donation, visit www.ambucopter.org.uk

N.F. ADDS: The Ambucopter covers the Brigg area. Hopefully, it won't have to pay any visits during the year ahead to attend local accidents or mishaps.