In most Christmas films and story books, there’s a happy ending. Sadly, real life doesn’t always have a fairytale finish.
Our critical care paramedics and doctors do absolutely everything they can when they’re fighting to save a life. They give people the best possible chance of survival and recovery. With advanced medications, skills, and equipment, our crew bring the highest standard of critical care directly to the patient. They give everything, every time.
But, sadly, there are those who don’t make it. We never forget these people.
Please donate today, so whatever the ending, we can be there when it matters most.
Could ensure the next person we’re called to is kept free from pain.
Could pay for a tourniquet, used to completely stop blood flow to a wound.
Could buy defibrillator pads, used to restart a loved one’s heart.
Could go towards protecting our crew from long-term hearing damage with a pair of acoustic ear defenders.
Accidents and emergencies don’t stop for Christmas. Last year, our critical care paramedic and doctor crews were called out 89 times between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day.
Eighty-nine times our crews answered the call when someone was seriously ill or injured. Eighty-nine times they brought advanced drugs, equipment, and expertise directly to a patient’s side.
From cardiac arrests to road traffic collisions and medical emergencies, our crews left their families at home and brought the best possible pre-hospital care into the community when every minute mattered.
The story usually told at Christmas time is one of happy endings, families reunited, and miraculous recoveries. But behind that is the untold story.
The story where a family is changed forever. The story where someone can never forget what they’ve witnessed. The story where a critical care paramedic or doctor gave someone everything, but it still wasn’t enough to change the ending.
These are the stories we don’t usually tell.
The doctor took the time to notice the person who he was, not just the patient. I’ll always remember that. It’s allowed me to remember who he was, not just what happened to him.
The crew had the courage to be honest with me. I knew it wasn’t a decision they took lightly. It felt like we were going through it together.
Just knowing that Thames Valley Air Ambulance did everything they possibly could to save her life means I’ll never have to worry about ‘what if’. I get a lot of comfort from that.
Please donate this Christmas. Your gift will keep our helicopter in the sky and our cars on the road, and it will also mean our Aftercare team can care for families, bystanders, and our crew long after the sirens have stopped and the scene has been cleared.
The day we treat a patient isn’t the final chapter of their story with us. Our Aftercare team are there for families, bystanders, and our crews in the aftermath of life-changing incidents. That support extends not just in the days and weeks after the event, but for however long it is needed.