For those of you who know me, will be aware that I have had the privilege of raising thousands of pounds for various charities over the past fifteen or so years. I have taken part in many different challenges including bike rides, half marathons, 10k, 5k runs to the National Three Peaks 24 hour challenge.

Sadly, in July 2018 I lost my beloved dad after a 3.5 year battle with Alzheimer's, this was a very difficult time which affected me greatly and I lost all motivation to want to do anything. It has taken me over a year to come to terms with my loss, and in order to get back on my feet I decided to sign up to take on the biggest challenge of my life, trekking to Everest Base Camp in April 2020.

There will be twelve of us in the group, and I am fortunate to have a good mate and former colleague as part of the group. The trek will take place over a fourteen day period including acclimatization days to hopefully help our bodies cope with dealing with altitude sickness. 

I am hoping to create a blog which I would like to be able to upload daily, technology, signal and battery willing.

For those who may be aware I am also a Community First Responder (CFR) with the Welsh Ambulance Service Trust (WAST) and having first hand experience of seeing what happens when dealing with emergency calls, as well as how critical time is, I have decided to nominate the Wales Air Ambulance Charity as my dedicated fundraising efforts as part of this trek. 

In 2019, the Wales Air Ambulance charity came of age, marking its 18th anniversary on 1st March. In that time , it has grown from a one helicopter service into the largest air ambulance operation in the UK. During September 2018, Wales Air Ambulance reached a significant milestone when it surpassed a total of 30,000 missions since its inception in 2001.

With the introduction of consultants and critical care practitioners to the service in 2015, along with the pioneering ED-standard equipment, it has also become one of the most medically advanced air ambulance operations in Europe.  

This medical enhancement has been possible thanks to a unique third sector and public sector partnership between the Wales Air Ambulance Charity and NHS Wales. The medical part of the operation is known within NHS Wales as the "Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service" (EMRTS Cymru), or the "Welsh Flying Medics". EMRTS Cymru focuses on the medical workforce and medical governance of the service.

NHS Wales, through EMRTS Cymru, supplies the medics while the charity works tirelessly to raise the £6.5 million a year to keep its four helicopters in the sky, serving Wales and saving lives.

The charity can be anywhere in Wales within 20 minutes, its doctors and medics fly the A&E department to the patient.It also runs the Children's Wales Air Ambulance service, transferring vulnerable babies and children to the specialist hospitals across the UK.

Recent data makes impressive reading, to show how valuable this service is.

April 2018-March 2019

Total number of calls- 3091

33% Female & 67% Male

35% attended by Rapid Response Road Vehicle, 65% attended by helicopter.

The two biggest number of cases attended were categorised as follows:

Road Traffic Collisions: 19%

Cardiac Arrest: 19%

In August 2018, Wales Air Ambulance took over the lease of Cardiff Heliport in a new venture which will help to generate funds for its lifesaving service. The new deal was struck with the Heliport owners Cardiff Council and the previous leaseholder, Cardiff City Heliport Ltd. It is believed to be the first time an air ambulance charity has taken operational control of a commercial heliport. 

The service currently operates a 12-hour service (8am-8pm) the vision for the near future is to be able to provide  a 24-hour operation to enable people to be helped both day and night. With your continued support, this can be achieved together.