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East Anglian Air Ambulance

The East Anglian Air Ambulance celebrated its 15th anniversary in 2015. From humble beginnings – one helicopter and one paramedic, operating one day a week – the EAAA has blossomed beyond all expectations

Once an organisation largely staffed by kindly medics on a day off, it is now a professional pre-hospital emergency service with a doctor and critical-care paramedic attending every mission. Previously a part-time service; it now operates seven days a week, 365 days a year, and is at the vanguard of research and clinical practice. Not only was 2015 a significant anniversary for the charity, it was also the year that brought one of the most significant advancements in the charity’s history: the arrival of the EC145 T2 helicopters.

Much larger than the previous aircraft, it can carry enough fuel to fly for over two hours, with a range of 300 nautical miles (335 miles); and whereas our former HEMS (helicopter emergency medical service) team comprised a pilot, a doctor and a criticalcare paramedic, the new helicopter will be able to accommodate two pilots and three HEMS crew, as well as a patient. Extending the reach and effectiveness of the EAAA medical teams enables the charity to play a leading role in training the next generation of pre-hospital clinicians.

More space also means that more can be done to help patients during the transfer process. The first of the new helicopters was based at the Cambridge base, but thanks to significant funding from the LIBOR fines fund, the EAAA was able to fund a second EC145 T2 based in Norwich. The capability of the EAAA has also been enhanced by the use of other new technologies. For example, arterial lines have long been used in hospitals to give very accurate readings of a patients’ blood pressure. But now, EAAA medics use arterial lines regularly on critically-ill patients at the scene. The lines are inserted just into the artery, and – especially on scene – it can be tricky to put them in if you haven’t had experience in doing so. But the benefit is significant: the line senses the pressure changes and gives a blood pressure reading for every single beat of the heart.

This transforms the way in which it is possible to monitor and care for patients who have had a cardiac arrest. Arterial lines have been used by EAAA for about ten months now and have proved invaluable to the clinical teams. Other developments at the East Anglian Air Ambulance include the introduction of an I-STAT machine, which is essentially a portable blood gas machine. It means that the EAAA medics can tell what level of oxygen is in blood, and that tells them how well they are ventilating a patient. It also helps to calculate the correct dose for anaesthetic. EAAA has also introduced the use of ultrasound machines (which will also help in putting in arterial lines). From the outside, these developments might appear as sudden and unexpected as they are exciting. But in reality, they have been years in the planning, and they could not have been possible without the tireless efforts and prodigious generosity of the charity’s supporters and fundraisers.

Corporate sponsorship
East Anglian Air Ambulance has always enjoyed generous corporate support from within the Greater Peterborough area. However, as the cost of funding this life-saving service increases, and we push forward with our ambitions plans for clinical advancements and training the future generation of emergency pre-hospital clinicians, we are hoping to work with a larger number of corporate partners in the coming year. Area Fundraising Manager, Chris Donaldson said: ‘We consider our corporate partnerships an important part of our fundraising. Whether companies choose us as their charity of the year, and involve their staff in fundraising events, or whether they choose to make a regular contribution to the charity through direct debit, they can be assured of our enthusiastic support. We are very keen to demonstrate how help from the commercial sector can directly affect patient outcomes locally and within the wider region, and we make ourselves available to come along and talk to managers and staff if required’.

If you would be interested in becoming a corporate sponsor for the East Anglian Air Ambulance, please contact Chris Donaldson on or 01733 367208.

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