Ambitious Charity Air Ambulance NI

For over five years now, Northern Ireland has had a dedicated Helicopter Emergency Medical Service looking after the people of Northern Ireland, operating for 12 hours daily, 365 days of the year. The service is operated by a partnership between the Northern Ireland Ambulance service and the charity Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.

In that period, the HEMS has been called upon on over 3,000 occasions to critically ill and injured patients of every age and background.

The range of incidents varies from day to day, as Operational Lead for the HEMS, Glenn O’Rorke, explains: “We make around 14 missions a week, forming an important part of the emergency services right across NI. An average week would include at least three serious road traffic collisions, three medical emergencies, three falls, one farm accident, one industrial accident, one serious sportrelated accident, one assault and one other accident, which could be deliberate self-harm, serious burns or drowning, to name a few. We feel privileged to help at the scene of an incident, giving patients critical care that may make a lifesaving difference.”

Air ambulance crews bring the skills and expertise of a hospital to the scene of an emergency, performing complex procedures using advanced equipment and drugs that improve survival rates.

William Graham from Kilkeel was working at home when he needed urgent help: “While working, I was crushed by a dumper truck. I could feel myself fading and believed I wasn’t going to make it, but then heard the helicopter and help arrive. My consultant told me I had a 5% chance of survival and I’ve done it! I’ll always be grateful to the team for their crucial lifesaving interventions.”

Colleen Milligan, business development manager at AANI, explains the importance of corporate support: “Our corporate supporters play a key role in helping us to maintain and develop this crucial service and we are actively seeking new corporate partners. We build innovative, tailored, and sustainable partnerships, and given the nature of our work we are well placed to remind staff teams of lifesaving messages on themes such as road safety and CPR. Our team has organised team-building activities for our corporates including mountain walks and dragon boat races. We also have a strong marketing focus to achieve joint promotion with our partners.”

The medical team at AANI treats on average two critically injured patients every day, 365 days a year. The impact for corporate supporters is tangible and clear. W&R Barnett and John Thompson & Sons have been committed supporters of Air Ambulance.

Jackie Wright said of a recent team-building fundraiser:

“We had 10 abseilers from W&R Barnett and a further six from John Thompson & Sons. We found it to be an amazing experience with the AANI team – they were always on hand to reply to any queries, were responsive and professional throughout and there to cheer us on. I would definitely recommend this as a good bonding experience as well as a great way to raise money for this fabulous charity.”

Colleen, from the team, went on to say, “If you or your company would like to support a lifesaving service with a dynamic, motivated and experienced charity team to support you every step of the way, we would love to hear from you. We have a full calendar of events to help you and your staff get together and have fun while supporting your local charity including abseils across three locations, skydiving opportunities and Ireland’s biggest Supercar Weekend as a key highlight in the summer. In addition to this, AANI is delighted to be chosen as the dedicated charity partner for the Mash Direct Belfast City Marathon (2023-2025), and will be encouraging all our corporate supporters to get involved. We are keen to remind readers that this event includes an eight-mile walk and team relay with distances from 4.2 miles, so you don’t have to be a full marathon distance runner! All AANI marathon event supporters will receive an invitation to the base, fundraising support and running vest or t-shirt.”

Kerry Anderson of the charity’s executive team added, “As a small and young charity we are also very keen to partner with the corporate sector in terms of sharing expertise and skills. Recently we have been able to access marketing and IT advice and expertise; corporates can contribute so much to help, and we warmly welcome support in this way.

Our corporate supporters are key as we look forward to the next five years and what that holds for the charity, service and of course patients who are at the centre of all we do.”

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