Ken Poole played county cricket for Nottinghamshire and coached at the High School for 28 years. In August 2014 he suffered a very serious accident. His life was saved by the Major Trauma Centre team at the QMC, which serves all of the East Midlands. During his recovery Ken has been helping the Saving Lives Helipad Appeal to fund an on-site Air Ambulance landing pad, which will buy vital time in the 'golden hour' to save lives. Please give what you can and/or come to The Maze on Wednesday 23rd December at 8pm to see some great acts for only £5 on the door (16+). Thanks to The Maze and the ONs' Society for their kind sponsorship; and to Rastarella Falade of Cultural Vibrations (Unity through Music) and Nick Lawford of Nottingham Hospitals Charity for all their help.

Julian Bower

Saving Lives Helipad Appeal: Case For Support

Introduction

Nottingham Hospitals Charity (NHC) is currently in the process of raising an essential £3m to support the development of the East Midlands Major Trauma Centre (EMMTC) by building an on-site helipad at the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham. 

A helipad will ensure that the most seriously injured patients from Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire and Derbyshire get transferred to treatment by some of the country’s most experienced and skilled clinicians even faster, giving even more people the very best chance of survival. 

East Midlands Major Trauma Centre

The East Midlands Major Trauma Centre (EMMTC) was established in April 2012 and in its first three years saved the lives of 172 people who would have died without its expertise.  Part of the Queen’s Medical Centre site in Nottingham, it is one of a national network of 22 specialist units which concentrate expertise and resources to give the best possible care, including intensive care and brain surgery.  The EMMTC - which treats over 1,600 people every year - has recently been ranked amongst the top three centres nationally for clinical outcomes.  The reorganisation of major trauma services in 2012 expected an additional 20% of lives to be saved; to date, EMMTC is achieving 31%.  This achievement is a testament to the level of care and expertise offered, which exists despite a significant hurdle: getting to the hospital on time.

The Problem

There is currently no helipad on-site at the QMC.  Current arrangements for EMMTC-bound air ambulances involve using temporary landing space at the University of Nottingham (the future of which is not guaranteed).  Patients are then transferred to a road ambulance and complete the journey by road, which can take up to 20 minutes.  This means that for the most seriously injured patients in the East Midlands, access time to some of the country’s most experienced and skilled clinicians is seriously compromised. 

The Golden Hour

When someone suffers a major trauma which involves multiple or serious injury that could result in death or serious disability, the speed with which they can get specialist medical help can be the difference between life and death or between recovering and recovering well.  For this reason, major trauma patients need to be transferred to a Major Trauma Centre.  In many situations, the quickest or most appropriate way to get a patient to their local MTC is by helicopter. 

It is widely recognised that the first 60 to 90 minutes (known as the “golden hour”) following a severe injury is critical to clinical outcomes and fast access to treatment is vital to give the patient a fighting chance.  Chances of survival deteriorate after this critical hour.

Despite being a trauma centre covering one of the largest geographical areas within the UK with a strong national reputation for life-saving skills in trauma and orthopaedic surgery, neurosurgery and intensive care, the QMC has no place for air ambulance helicopters to land.  Patients and their paramedics must make a secondary transfer from air ambulance to road ambulance through unpredictable traffic and potential road closures that can take up to twenty minutes.

The Solution

Nottingham Hospitals Charity is currently fundraising to build a Helipad for the EMMTC.  This project - which will cost £3m - is entirely reliant on charitable donations.  An on-site helipad will ensure our most seriously injured patients, particularly those from remote areas, are transported to our Emergency Department even faster, giving them the very best chance of survival. 

The new helipad will be located within the grounds of QMC on the top storey of a newly built car park (which is being entirely funded and built by Interserve).  It will include a dedicated, staffed road ambulance that will be on hand to transport patients to the emergency entrance within two minutes.  This state-of-the-art, fully reinforced helipad will have integral security, lighting and fire retardation. 

To date we have raised over £1.5m in donations and pledges, but we still have some way to go.

The Helipad’s importance to the local community cannot be overstated.  For the most serious and critically injured patients, we will provide significantly faster access to the life-saving skills of some of the country’s leading specialists in trauma and orthopaedic surgery, neurosurgery and intensive care.

EMMTC serves 4.5 million people spread across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire.  Major trauma - such as injuries caused by serious road traffic accidents, shootings, stabbings, agricultural accidents, falls from height and major burns - is the most common killer of people under 55 in the UK.  A helipad on-site at Nottingham’s QMC will dramatically speed up transfers to the EMMTC.  It will ensure that those people in need can access the emergency care and specialist expertise that they require, faster than ever before.

Summary

This project is quite simply life-saving. Without charitable support, the provision of an air ambulance landing pad in the East Midlands will not happen.

Air ambulances are charitably funded.  The places where air ambulances land are also charitably funded.  The same is true across the country.

Major trauma can happen to anyone, at any time.  In an emergency, fast access to treatment is vital to give the patient a fighting chance – and you never know when you or someone close to you might be the one in need.

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