Year In Review: Your Questions Answered!

The helipad is a bit closer, but we still need to transfer the patient to a waiting ambulance to then drive the patient to the hospital.  The clinical team will book the helicopter into land at the helipad so normally the ambulance is already there waiting for us. 

By its very nature, flying at night is challenging and the pilots maintain a rigorous training regime to ensure they keep up with their night flying skills.  One of the ways we are doing this is by the use of night training landing sites within the Eastern region and crews will conduct training flights to these sites on a regular basis.  Even when training, the clinical team are also onboard, and we are on call at a moment’s notice to respond should a HEMS mission be received whilst airborne.  Flying 24 hrs can be challenging as fatigue is a factor, particularly in the early hours of the morning.  This is mitigated by the fact the EAAA fly multi pilot operations which adds an additional level of safety since the pilots can monitor each other should they be feeling the effects of fatigue. 

Some of the hardest places to land are in the middle of a town or city.  There are a multitude of things to consider such as the size of a potential site and also what is surrounding it.  The helicopter has quite a strong downwash and we want to ensure that, where possible, we don’t cause damage to people’s property.  We also need to consider what access the clinical team have in terms of getting out of the helicopter and getting to the patient as quickly as possible.  Thankfully the Eastern region is pretty flat, so we don’t have too much terrain to think about.   

Anyone authorised to drive on blue lights within EAAA has undertaken an approved emergency services driving course through the ambulance service.  Each driver is then subject to a 5 year Section 19 High Speed Driving Assessment.

It would usually be the Paramedic, however a small number of Doctors working with EAAA have undertaken the same level of training as the Paramedics and are authorised for blue light driving. 

The new operating base has, thus far, exceeded our expectations. Running costs are as expected. 

The number of missions has been quite stable over the last five years. We are confident we can meet the current demand and more if required.  

Out of the 1800 patients we attended in 2021/22, 66 were categorised as being a result of a Sport/Leisure injury. 36 of these were equestrian accidents. The other 30 were sports related injuries, such as football and rugby. If a patient were to suffer a cardiac arrest whilst partaking in a sport then this is more likely to be coded as a cardiac arrest than a sport/leisure injury.  

I think the greatest driver of change will be technology, in the fields of medical equipment, aviation and information systems. Our medical capability will progress and our ability to transmit diagnostic data to receiving hospitals will develop. We will be thinking very hard to understand how drone and autonomous aviation technology might be able to assist us, and whether electric propulsion will become a suitable technology within HEMS. Whether there is scope to adopt artificial intelligence in any aspect of our operations will also be an interesting area to explore. Away from technology considerations, we will need to move our southern operating base from Cambridge City Airport within this timeframe, and this will be an opportunity to enhance the training and rest facilities for our Anglia 2 crew. 

We work closely with Magpas, as we do with Essex & Herts Air Ambulance within the eastern region and in partnership with East of England Ambulance Service (EEAST). The HEMS crews of all three air ambulances are tasked by EEAST and we coordinate our activities at a regional level and aim to ensure that the development of our services does not result in duplication or waste. In other respects, the charities are completely independent of each other and are autonomous in their decision-making.