During a visit to the North Wales operating base of the Wales Air Ambulance, Members of the Welsh Parliament - Janet Finch-Saunders and Sam Rowlands - have praised the “selfless dedication” of the crews, staff, fundraisers, and volunteers involved.
The service is a partnership between the Wales Air Ambulance Charity and NHS Wales (through the Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service), delivers highly effective critical care for patients while securing downstream benefits to NHS Wales.
The visit to Caernarfon Airport, saw the politicians meet with Dr Sue Barnes, the Charity’s Chief Executive, Professor David Lockey, the National Director of EMRTS, Mark Winter, the Operations Director of EMRTS, and Stephen Curtis, a Trustee of Wales Air Ambulance Charity.
Commenting on the tour, Janet said:
“The Wales Air Ambulance Charity provide an essential life-saving emergency medical service for the critically ill and injured across Wales. That their team is capable of reaching a critically ill patient anywhere in Wales within 20 minutes of receiving a call is a testament to their selfless dedication.
“With the advanced standard care that the crews deliver at the scene of an incident, and the rapid transfer of patients to specialist medical care across Wales, including throughout the night, it can perhaps be all too easy to forget that this is a charitable organisation reliant on the support of the public.
“Having supported the valuable work of this fantastic charity in the Senedd, I was delighted to have been invited to tour their North Wales operating base. This tour once again underlined how incredibly lucky we are to have such an emergency facility covering the whole of Wales.
“With this in mind, and as we head into the season of goodwill, I encourage residents from across Aberconwy to find out more about their work and investigate how you can come to support the cause.”
The cost of running the helicopters during the day currently stands at £6.5 million every year. To maintain the overnight helicopter, Wales Air Ambulance must raise an additional £1.5 million, bringing the annual fundraising total required for a 24/7 operation to £8 million.
