As the region braces itself for the pandemic’s second wave, we will begin to facilitate the transfer of both Covid-19 and non-Covid-19 patients to help balance capacity in intensive care units.

The patients which will be transferred, whether Covid-19 or non-Covid-19, will all be critically ill, intubated and anaesthetised.

East Anglian Air Ambulance supported the transfer of 17 critically ill Covid-19 positive patients by road ambulance between April and May of this year. In this second wave, we will also be facilitating non-Covid-19 patient transfers on the helicopter.

The transfers will take place alongside our normal air ambulance work and will act as a back-up to hospitals that cannot facilitate the transfers themselves.

Doctor Victor Inyang, Medical Director at EAAA, said: “It’s vital to us as a charitable organisation that we continue to support the NHS and other frontline emergency services with the crisis response to the pandemic. Our teams have the pre-hospital critical care skills to be able to assist in these transfers, and we’re happy to help wherever we can alongside our 999 call outs.

“We encourage everyone to follow the Public Health England guidance, including staying at home, wearing a mask and regularly washing hands, despite the optimistic news of a vaccine becoming available at the end of the year/early next year.

“This is a hugely challenging time for us all, both personally and professionally. Please continue to look out for each other and stay safe during the second lockdown.”

Victor Inyang

Medical Director, EAAA

We have seen a 10% increase in emergency taskings between August and October compared to last year, and our operational bases in Norwich and Cambridge remain closed to the general public and non-essential staff. In the current financial year, we predict a fundraising income shortfall of £1.7m due to the pandemic.