Image credit East Anglian Air Ambulance.
On Sunday 8 September hundreds of hardy walkers will take on either a 24 mile or 24 kilometre coastal walk along the North Norfolk Coast in aid of the East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA), with both routes finishing at Holkham Hall.
The ‘Four for 24’ group is made up of four Norfolk nurses who have all had experience working at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital: Louise Langham-Hill, Natasha Pickett, Clare Johnson, and Bev Macfarlane (in the picture from left to right) .
This team know first-hand how important the air ambulance is in getting seriously ill or injured patients to them as quickly as possible and are taking on the 24 kilometre walking challenge to support the charity’s mission to expand their service to fly 24 hours a day.
Bev MacFarlane, ex ED nurse at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital and current nurse at Cromer Hospital, said: “Supporting EAAA is very close to our hearts. All of us are ED nurses or ex-ED nurses so we have seen first-hand the benefit EAAA gives to patients who have suffered a life-threatening incident or medical emergency. Personally, my husband was knocked off his bicycle in an accident and taken to Addenbrooke’s by EAAA, so I am proud to take part in Trek 24 and do my part to raise funds for this vital charity”.
Trek 24 is a brand new fundraising event which has been created as part of the charity’s fundraising drive for EAAA’s Mission 24/7 – to fly their Anglia One helicopter from Norwich 24 hours a day. So far over 200 people are signed up to take part, and tickets for the event can still be purchased until 31 August.
Currently the helicopter flies from Norwich between 7am and 7pm. The charity’s expert doctors and paramedics already work 24/7, with the night shift provided via rapid response vehicle. By flying 24/7, the charity estimate they will be able to attend up to 600 more missions a year then they currently do, flying all over East Anglia, not just in Norfolk.
To do this, EAAA need to raise an additional £1 million a year – on top of the £12 million they already need to keep their helicopters flying and saving lives – and aim to be operational 24/7 by helicopter in 2020 - becoming the first air ambulance charity in the East of England to do so.
Leanne Kershaw, EAAA Events Fundraiser, said: “It’s vitally important to have a night-time helicopter service in the area, especially in rural Norfolk where it can take so long to get around by car. We’ve designed this event to support our mission 24/7 and have been really impressed with the number of people who have already signed up to take part and will be supporting us next month.
“Seeing teams like these lovely ladies entering is really special and we can’t wait to see a sea of blue EAAA supporters taking over the North Norfolk coastline next month. We hope that passers-by on the day will help to cheer these amazing walkers on!”.
For more information, go to www.eaaa.org.uk
On Friday 10 September, East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) celebrated Air Ambulance Week 2021 with a special event in Norwich to mark the official opening of the charity’s newly extended and renovated 24/7 operational base and headquarters at Norwich Airport.
During the event, the base, which is called Helimed House, was also blessed as part of a multi-faith ceremony to wish the air ambulance crews and patients the utmost safety.
22 key figures representing the lifeblood of the charity, including former patients, donors, crew, a staff member and a volunteer, cut a yellow ribbon to officially open the base, which was completed earlier this year.
Building the state-of-the-art facility has been a long-term organisational goal, enabling the charity to operate a 24/7 service by air and road for the first time. The new headquarters will help future-proof the organisation, bring more teams under one roof and provide adequate rest and welfare facilities for the Anglia One crew. The new base also includes an immersive training suite for the clinical teams.
EAAA has revealed that July was the charity’s busiest month on record in over four years and EAAA’s busiest ever July.
The air ambulance charity, which has two teams covering Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire, was tasked 266 times across the region in July. This was 38 times more than in June, where the charity was tasked 228 times, a 16% increase month on month. In comparison, in July 2020 the charity was tasked 247 times and in July 2019 235 times, making July 2021 EAAA’s busiest ever July.
With more people staying in the UK this summer the demand on resources like the air ambulance is expected to increase. In addition, this period covers the charity’s first month of 24/7 flying, making the medical teams available to more people by helicopter during the early hours of the morning. The top three reasons for calling out the air ambulance teams in July were; medical emergency, cardiac arrest and accidental injury.
East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) is now permanently able to deliver blood transfusions as a core part of its life-saving service.
Following an urgent fundraising appeal made by EAAA in May, the air ambulance charity, which covers Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire, is now able to carry packed red blood cells and freeze-dried plasma on every mission.
Blood transfusions ensure that the most gravely injured patients suffering a major bleed have the best chance of getting to hospital through increasing oxygen delivery and clot production.
EAAA’s Blood on Board project has involved raising in excess of £90,000 and essential partnership working between two of the region’s hospitals, the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) and Addenbrooke’s, and two volunteer-driven blood biker charities, Norfolk Blood Bikes and SERV Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.
Tonight (Wednesday 30 June) is a landmark moment for East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) and the provision of emergency critical care in the region, as the charity starts flying 24/7 for the very first time.
The gap between 1:30 am and 7am where there has been no helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) coverage in the region will now be closed, as EAAA becomes the first air ambulance in the East of England to fly 24 hours a day.
Becoming a 24/7 service for East Anglia has been a long-term ambition of the charity, with the initial research for expanding to a 24/7 operation taking place four years ago. Since then, EAAA has taken gradual steps towards achieving this ambition, which importantly included raising an extra million pounds a year to fund the additional operating hours, increasing its car cover to 24/7, building a new operational base and now 24/7 flying.
Chris Marshall, aged 49, is a barber from Sheringham and father of two. In May last year Chris was involved in a life-threatening collision with a car near Cromer Golf Club, while he was out training for a 100-mile cycle challenge. When Chris’s wife was first notified about the accident, she was told Chris wasn’t likely to survive.
The accident happened around 11:30am on 12 May 2020. A team from the East Anglian Air Ambulance was tasked at 11:39am to provide critical care at the scene, landing on the Cromer Golf Club car park. The EAAA team worked for over an hour to deliver the enhanced pre-hospital care interventions required to give Chris a fighting chance. These included performing a thoracostomy, a procedure to release air to treat a collapsed lung, and anaesthetising Chris to take control of his breathing.
Chris had a suspected head injury and had broken several bones in his body. His injuries were classed as life-threatening and without the enhanced interventions of the air ambulance team, he would not have made it to hospital.
Fortunately, the team were able to stabilise Chris enough to be moved and he was flown to the major trauma centre at Addenbrooke’s for specialist treatment. Chris’ injuries were extensive and included three bleeds on the brain, several spinal fractures, including some damage to his spinal cord, a fractured pelvis, broken left shoulder blade, hip and ankle and several broken ribs on his right side. He has since suffered double vision, slurred speech and had to learn to walk and talk again. Chris also has nerve damage which still prevents him from fully lifting his arms up.