Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance (HIOWAA) is calling on its communities to give the gift of time this Christmas, as the Charity braces for a challenging winter period.
Last December, HIOWAA responded to 195 potentially life-saving call-outs, up by 35 on the same period in the previous year, their busiest December on record. Due to the totally unpredictable economic effects of Covid-19, the life-saving Charity is calling on its communities to donate £5 this Christmas to help keep them flying and saving lives. Supporters can donate via the Charity website, www.hiowaa.org/Christmas, where they can also watch the Charity’s short film which highlights the impact of the Critical Care Teams when time is of the essence.
The Gift of Time
In September 2014, HIOWAA was called to help Malcolm who was involved in a serious cycling accident, just outside Farnham. The team treated Malcom at the scene and airlifted him to University Hospital Southampton. Sadly, Malcolm’s injuries were too severe, and he died nine days later, surrounded by his family. Malcolm’s daughter, Claire, said:
“I will always be incredibly grateful to HIOWAA for the care they gave my Dad at the scene of his accident and the speed with which they got him to hospital. Instead of his final hours being on the roadside, we were able to spend nine days with him, all together as a family, and to be with him by his bedside to say goodbye. I will be eternally grateful for the gift of time which the Air Ambulance gave my family to come to terms with what had happened to our loving, kind and gentle Dad.”
Time Can Be A Healer
In 2019, Mike suffered a cardiac arrest when he was at home with his wife, Dolores. After nearly an hour of treatment and CPR, the HIOWAA Critical Care Team miraculously managed to get a pulse. Mike said:
“Had it not been for the Critical Care Team responding so quickly, I would not now be looking forward to celebrating Christmas with my wife and family, making plans for the years ahead. I cannot express how thankful we are to the Air Ambulance. I owe them my life.”
HIOWAA CEO, Alex Lochrane, said:
“The quicker we get to our patients, the more their chances of survival and recovery increase: it’s as simple as that. Our Doctors, Paramedics and Pilots will be on the front line using all their skills to provide each and every patient with the best chance of survival this Christmas. For us to carry on saving lives, or in some cases transforming a patient’s final moments into days, the support of our communities is crucial. As we all face the turmoil of another lockdown our Critical Care Teams are ready, as always, to be there in people’s darkest moment of need. Without the support of all our communities, however, we just could not do what we do, and now: we need it more than ever.”
