Sebby’s story
Two-year-old Sebby, from Norfolk, loves diggers and dinosaurs, and is inquisitive about everything. In December 2024, he was enjoying a morning at a play centre when he suffered burns from a hot cup of coffee. East Anglian Air Ambulance’s (EAAA) Anglia One (Norwich) crew were tasked by critical care car to bring enhanced care to Sebby at the scene of the accident.
Sebby’s Mum, Kym, explains, “That morning, I was working from home, and Sebby was enjoying a visit to soft play with his Grandad (my Dad), as he often does. They’re usually back promptly by midday so when they didn’t return, I called Dad. He said there had been an accident. Sebby had been badly burned on his arm, abdomen and leg by a hot cup of coffee, which had spilled off a table.”
The Anglia One (Norwich) crew of Dr Nick, Dr Toby and Critical Care Paramedic (CCP) Will were tasked by critical care car at 11:54am – just four minutes after the 999-call was made. Critical care cars are sometimes the best option to reach patients in the quickest time, especially if the medical emergency is in a location where the helicopters cannot easily land, such as urban areas, or in the event of inclement weather when the conditions are out of legal flying limits. The vehicles offer more resilience, allowing EAAA crews to provide effective 24/7 cover by car and, with exception of a stretcher, are equipped with the same high standard of medical monitoring and assessment equipment as the two helicopters. In 2024, EAAA crews were tasked by road over 1,300 times.
Staff initially put Sebby’s burns under a cold shower. When the EAAA crew arrived just 12 minutes after being tasked, the first thing they did was return him to the shower for a longer period of 20 minutes to try to prevent his burns from becoming worse. They also gave Sebby enhanced pain relief through an inhaler and wrapped his burns in cling film before accompanying him to hospital by land ambulance.
In the meantime, Kym was making her way directly to the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH), arriving before the ambulance.
“When Sebby arrived, EAAA’s Dr Nick came through to A&E and explained everything that had happened. I went through to see Sebby; he was sitting on the bed wearing a winter bobble head and wrapped in a blanket. He sat on my lap but was very dazed because of the pain relief, and he had cling film around his arm and abdomen. Dr Nick and CCP Will stayed a while – they were very nice, and distracted Sebby by showing him dinosaur cartoons on their phone.”
Sebby had huge blisters and dead skin. “The worst part,” Kym adds, “was when the cling film was removed; when Sebby saw his skin, he became very distressed. He said, ‘It’s not me, what is it?’ From that point I didn’t let him see it and held a towel up whenever his dressings were changed.
Due to the severity of Sebby’s burns, he needed to go to the specialist burns unit at Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford. Kym drove Sebby straight there from NNUH. He would require a further six visits in total.
“There was concern for infection and the possibility that Sebby would need a skin graft. Thankfully he didn’t – the dressings were enough, and it is amazing to see how well he has healed.”
EAAA’s dedicated Aftercare team were on hand to support Kym and Sebby after the incident. The service offers specialist emotional and practical support to patients and their families in the turbulent aftermath of a medical emergency attended by EAAA and is delivered by a specialist team of clinicians. The team arranged for Kym and Sebby to visit Helimed House in February 2025, where they met Dr Nick – this time in better circumstances.
“I was surprised by the level the of aftercare offered by EAAA. It’s been nice and something really positive,” Kym says. “The visit to Helimed House was lovely. When the accident happened, I went into ‘What do I need to do’ mode. It was almost Christmas, and it was a busy time, so the visit was a nice opportunity to decompress and ask questions. Aftercare clinician Natalie and Aftercare volunteer Maureen were great, and it was really good to see Dr Nick again.”
Sebby also saw the EAAA helicopter during his visit.
“He took it very seriously!” Kym explains. “It was good for him to see it as it added to the narrative. He loved it.”
