Air Ambulance Week 2023: Support your local charities  

Image: Air Ambulances UK

Air Ambulance Week 2023 takes off across the UK from September 4 – 10, with air ambulance charities across the UK delivering the vital message that they can’t save lives without the people they serve. The national awareness week calls on people all over the UK to help support their local air ambulance charity. 

This is the only week in the year dedicated to raising awareness and funds for these charities and is organised by Air Ambulances UK.

The event also highlights that anyone, anywhere in the UK, can become a patient at any time. Air ambulance charities collectively make over 37,000 lifesaving missions each year across the UK. There are 37 air ambulance helicopters in the UK, operated by 21 air ambulance charities, providing pre-hospital care support to the National Health Service (NHS) and forming an important part of the UK’s frontline emergency services.

Air ambulance crews bring the Emergency Department to patients who have suffered a life-threatening or life-changing trauma or medical emergency, providing specialist critical care to save lives. The UK’s 21 air ambulance charities receive no day-to-day government funding and depend almost entirely on charitable donations to deliver their lifesaving care.

On average, an air ambulance can reach someone in urgent need within 15 minutes. Air ambulance charities are collectively dispatched to over 102 lifesaving missions each day across the UK. The average cost of each airborne lifesaving mission is, on average, around £3,962, and donations account for almost all of the funding. Simmy Akhtar, Air Ambulances UK’s CEO, said: "Air Ambulance Week is an important reminder of the vital work of air ambulance charities across the UK. The generosity of individuals and organisations makes all the difference. It is your donations and support that enable air ambulance charities to continue to deliver advanced prehospital care to people with a sudden life-threatening injury or medical illness.

"By supporting Air Ambulances UK and your local air ambulance, you are directly affecting lives and improving patient outcomes. Your compassion and generosity play a crucial role in sustaining the invaluable service we provide to our communities."

These operations save the lives of many. In one instance, Spike was airlifted by Essex and Herts Air Ambulance (EHAAT) after a horrific accident occurred, leaving Spike with devastating injuries and 'a three per cent chance of survival'. 

When EHAAT arrived, the team quickly stabilised Spike and placed him into a medically induced coma at the roadside before intubating and ventilating him. He was airlifted to the Major Trauma Centre at the Royal London Hospital.

Spike was rushed to the theatre with a fractured skull, cheekbone, and eye socket, along with severe damage to the right side of his brain. The team of neurosurgeons removed part of Spike’s skull in order to relieve pressure and allow the brain to swell. After five days in the hospital, Spike woke up. He was breathing unaided and could give a thumbs up, but an MRI scan confirmed his brain was damaged on the right frontal lobe – the part that controls emotions and inhibitions. After 16 days in the hospital, Spike underwent a number of operations in order to repair the many fractures he had sustained, including a full facial reconstruction.

Spike’s mother, Carrie, said: "Spike had a 3 per cent chance of surviving that night. The quickness and speed of the air ambulance saved Spike’s life. He wouldn’t be here without the air ambulance, and we are really grateful to have Spike back. His recovery has been remarkable, and that is thanks to the air ambulance."

To show your support for Air Ambulance Week, you can make a one-time donation to Air Ambulances UK by visiting www.airambulancesuk.org/donate-now or get in direct contact with your local air ambulance charity.