Lifesaving move will take Yorkshire doctors to the skies

A potentially lifesaving recruitment drive has seen 11 emergency doctors join the crew of the Yorkshire Air Ambulance (YAA).
By The Newsroom
Published 3rd Jun 2016, 05:00 BST
The Yorkshire Air Ambulance charity.The Yorkshire Air Ambulance charity.
The Yorkshire Air Ambulance charity.

The charity has linked up with the Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust and NHS commissioners to launch a new critical care team consisting of 11 consultants in emergency medicine and anaesthesia. They will work on the YAA’s helicopters 12 hours a day, every day of the year.

The team will carry extra drugs and also be able to perform emergency anaesthesia and lifesaving procedures at the scene of incidents.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The agreement between the NHS and the charity formalises a partnership which has seen doctors fly with the YAA on an ad-hoc basis for a decade. It will see doctors seconded to the YAA by their host trusts.

Dr Andrew Pountney, emergency medicine consultant at Pinderfields Hospital, is the clinical lead for the Yorkshire Critical Care Team.

He said: “This is about complementing the excellent service already provided by Yorkshire Air Ambulance paramedics and other frontline response teams.”

The YAA serves 5million people across Yorkshire and has carried more than 6,600 people in its 15-year history.

Related topics:YorkshireYorkshire Air AmbulanceNHSNHS TrustYorkshire Ambulance Service