County Air Ambulance based at EMA
| Published: 1st March 2007 13:47 |
This service is no longer operating - replaced by Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Rutland Air Ambulance (DLRAA) on 1st April 2008
Follow this link DLRAA for their details
In November 1999 the County Air Ambulance, which serves Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland moved to its base at the Airport. It is operational 7 days a week during day light hours and is crewed by the Pilot and 2 Paramedics.
Most people assume that the Air Ambulance is part of the Land Ambulance service; it is not, it runs entirely on charitable donations and every year it has to raise £3 million to keep the service operational. It does not rceive any money from the Government or qualifies for Lottery funding and yet it saves lives.
It is a proven fact that after experiencing a major accident if you are taken to hospital within 60 minutes - The Golden Hour - you have a 40% better chance of making a full recovery.
County Air Ambulance has 3 helicopters based at the Nottingham East Midlands Airport, RAF Cosford and at the motorway service station at Strensham on the M5. It covers 11 Counties, and area of 8000 square miles with a population of 7.8 million. The County Air Ambulance travelling at 140 miles per hour can reach anywhere in the Region within just 19 minutes,
It is not just Road Traffic Accidents that the helicopter flies to although these account for 55- 60% of the work, it also attend accidents and medical emergencies that happen in remote locations. On average the County Air Ambulance airlifts 8 fallen horse riders a month and it is a frequent visitor to the Peak District especially during the summer months.
The highly trained team of Paramedics are dedicated to their work and are qualified in Pre Hospital Care procedures and thanks to the skilled pilots the injured person can be flown to hospital within the Golden Hour and have that 40% better chance of making a full recovery.
Once the emergency call has been received the Pilot will start the Helicopter and seek clearance from Air Traffic Control to take off, the Air Ambulance is then given priority and all other Air Traffic will be held until the helicopter has taken off and is on it's way to the accident.
For further information or if you would like to support the service please call Barbara Parish the Area Fund Raiser on 01332 817671.
Visit the County Air Ambulance website here for more information.
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