NI man thanks Air Ambulance one year on from horrific collision
A Co Tyrone man has thanked the Air Ambulance, one year on from he sustained serious injuries in a head on collision.
Oliver Kerr from Carrickmore was driving his van on the outskirts of Coalisland when he had a high-speed head-on collision with a lorry.
The NI Ambulance Service and the air ambulance were both tasked to the accident, as well as NI Fire & Rescue Service who had to cut Oliver out of his van before he could receive treatment.
Oliver had sustained serious crush injuries and broken bones across his body from his head to his toes but was still conscious and in a huge amount of pain.
The Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) doctor and paramedic team worked alongside NIAS road crews and the Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) administering Oliver with pain-relief and provided him with pre-hospital care at the scene. He was then airlifted to the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast in a journey time of approx. 15 minutes, landing on the helipad on the roof before being passed onto definitive care with the RVH major trauma team. Over one year on from his accident, father-of-four Oliver praises the care he received that day.
“I can’t thank the HEMS team, the NIAS road crews and all emergency services enough for what they did for me. The HEMS team provided me with a very high level of care at the scene before transporting me very speedily and comfortably in the helicopter to Belfast,” he said.
“I spent three weeks in hospital and I am still recovering from my injuries. I was released on Christmas[3] Eve which meant everything to be at home again with my family. I will always be incredibly grateful to the service and ask that people support the charity in any way they can.”
The HEMS crew will be on duty on Christmas day, and every day of the year, there for us all should the worst happen. During the month of December, the medics anticipate being called upon on over 60 occasions.
Glenn O’Rorke, Operational Lead of HEMS said: “During the winter season the profile of missions reflects the time of year and people’s activity. For example, we may be called out to less sporting accidents at this time of year but more road traffic collisions.
“Whatever has caused the critical emergency situation, our commitment to the public is to be there, day in, day out to look after the people of Northern Ireland.
“The doctors, paramedics and medical equipment is the provision and governance of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS), but it’s never taken for granted by our team the support from the public that enables us to fly to the sickest people who need us, on average twice per day.”
Kerry Anderson, Head of Fundraising at Air Ambulance NI added: “When most of us will be off work and enjoying time with family and friends, the air ambulance service will continue. You can play your part by donating or subscribing a loved one to our charity membership, Club AANI.”
The HEMS has been operational for 6 years and during that time has been called out on over 4,000 occasions. It is provided by way of a partnership between the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service and the charity, Air Ambulance NI.
Each day the charity needs to raise almost £7,000 to sustain and develop the service. You can contact the charity directly on 028 9262 2677 or by email on [email protected][4].
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References
- ^ Where to go for healthcare in Northern Ireland this Christmas and New Year (www.belfastlive.co.uk)
- ^ Baby’s ‘incredible transformation’ after being born with a hole in his heart (www.belfastlive.co.uk)
- ^ Christmas (www.belfastlive.co.uk)
- ^ [email protected] (www.belfastlive.co.uk)
- ^ here (www.belfastlive.co.uk)
- ^ sign up to our daily newsletter (www.belfastlive.co.uk)