Why We're Supporting Yorkshire Air Ambulance at Living North LIVE
Living North's chosen charity for this year's Living North LIVE Fair is Yorkshire Air Ambulance
For 25 years, Yorkshire Air Ambulance (YAA) has been at the heart of communities, providing rapid-response emergency care to the five million people living across Yorkshire’s three million acres. With two air support units, based at Nostell near Wakefield and RAF Topcliffe near Thirsk, its helicopters can reach the most remote locations, bringing critical care to those who need it most.
Gemma Richmond joined the Yorkshire Ambulance Service in 2002 and is now a specialist critical care paramedic for Yorkshire Air Ambulance. ‘I work alongside a mixture of doctors and paramedics and we work all year round,’ she tells us. ‘We work on-board the aircrafts to respond, assess and treat patients. Yorkshire is such a big county that it often involves us travelling to quite remote areas, that are out of the way for an ambulance service to reach, and obviously quite a distance from some hospitals. On a lot of occasions we’re transporting patients and saving time because we can provide such a quick response. But of course we’re available for more urban work in cities across the county too. It can be varied work, but between the aircrafts we can get to any patient (weather dependent) within about 20 minutes anywhere in Yorkshire.’
Last year, YAA’s critical care teams responded to more than 1,400 incidents, providing life-saving care to more than 1,300 patients across Yorkshire, and 949 of those patients were transported to hospitals and major trauma centres for urgent specialist treatment.
‘We even respond outside our region to help neighbouring services,’ Gemma adds. ‘The charity relies entirely on donations from people across Yorkshire. We’re not funded in any other way, but there are lots of ways in which people can help.’ That includes donating online, recycling clothes, purchasing from the online shop, donating as part of a will or volunteering your own time. Gemma says all of this support is ‘really, really appreciated’.
Visitors to Living North LIVE will be able to donate to Yorkshire Air Ambulance on the day, and also visit their stand to meet members of the team. ‘The Fair will give people the opportunity to find out a bit more about us,’ says Gemma. ‘There’ll be volunteers who will be able to explain what we do and the role we play across Yorkshire. The thing about the air ambulance is that we can help anyone at any time. Anyone can have an accident or become unwell and find themselves in a situation where they need help, and when people chat to us at LIVE they’ll learn a lot about what we’re doing.
‘I think people are surprised when they learn that everything comes from donations. We simply wouldn’t fly if people weren’t able to donate their money or time. There’ll be merchandise on sale and lovely greetings cards designed by a local artist. Living North LIVE is a really good way to have a chat and find out more about us.’
The charity recently announced the arrival of its third, brand-new, H145-D3 helicopter, G-YAIR, and Gemma says the service is going from strength to strength. ‘We’re always there for people when they need us but I hope we continue to develop, especially with the medical life-saving interventions we have,’ she says. ‘We’ve got a very strong team of doctors who have great ideas on how we can develop medically and that will benefit our patients in the future. If we can continue to provide the highest quality emergency care we can, then that will directly benefit patients in the future.’
Meet the Yorkshire Air Ambulance team at Living North LIVE at York Racecourse (21st–23rd March) or visit yorkshireairambulance.org.uk to find out more.
Yellow Yorkshire
From 1st to 30th April you’re invited to turn Yorkshire yellow in celebration of Yorkshire Air Ambulance. There are plenty of ways to get involved, including hosting a Yellow Yorkshire Quiz, a recycling collection at your workplace, a yellow-themed dress-down day, or turning your shop window yellow. Simply create your digital fundraising page online.
Yorkshire Air Ambulance Skydive
11TH MAY
Head to Bridlington on Sunday 11th May to take on Yorkshire Air Ambulance’s skydive to help save lives across Yorkshire. You’ll brave jumping from 10,000 feet and free-falling at over 120mph with stunning views of the Yorkshire coast to raise money for the charity.
YAA Golf Day
26TH JUNE
Join Yorkshire Air Ambulance for a day of golf at the Leeds Golf Club at Oulton Hall Hotel. You’ll also enjoy a meal, goody bag and a chance to win a five-night break for two at the Isla Canela resort in Spain, with two rounds of golf included.
