New Midlands Air Ambulance crews set to lift off
For eight members of West Midlands Ambulance Service staff, the future will be very different. They will soon be seeing patients from several hundred feet up and travelling to them faster than they ever have before.
The group are set to become aircrew paramedics flying on the three Midlands Air Ambulances based at Cosford in Shropshire, Stensham in Worcestershire and Tattenhill in Staffordshire.
From an initial group of 80 applicants, the group have made it through the gruelling selection process and will begin three year secondments on the aircraft at the beginning of August.
After passing the initial selection each of the eight had to pass their Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) course. This involves areas such as detailed work on health & safety training in and around the helicopter, safe and effective clinical care within a helicopter and training on how flying could affect the patient and principles of flight, navigation and meteorology.
Becky Tinsley, Air Operations Manager, said: “I am looking forward to the new staff being part of the Midlands Air Ambulance team and working with them during their time with air ops.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the staff who are coming to the end of their secondments for all their hard work and dedication.”
The new recruits will fly in the red Eurocopter EC 135 T2 helicopters at speeds of between 120 and 150 knots on route to often critically ill patients whose lives could be saved by being airlifted to specialist medical help such as that available at the Regional Trauma Centre at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham.
