Call to help air ambulance as donations drop
The Midlands Air Ambulance says charities across the UK have faced a significant drop in donations as the economic effects of the pandemic take hold.
This year has seen Midlands Air Ambulance continue to provide lifesaving treatment as well as playing a vital role in the frontline response to Covid-19, with many of the crew being redeployed to NHS roles.
Air Ambulance week launched in Shropshire this week on the theme "because every second counts", highlighting the care delivered daily by Midlands Air Ambulance Charity and the UK’s other 21 air ambulance operators.
Members of the public are being urged to show their support and help the local air ambulance charity continue providing lifesaving care by donating to Midlands Air Ambulance Charity’s online bucket collection or making a one-off donation direct to the charity through its website.
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Emma Gray, fundraising and marketing director for Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, said: “Or if you prefer to text to donate, you can do so by simply texting MISSIONPOSSIBLE as one word, followed by the amount of your choice to 70085. For example, MISSIONPOSSIBLE £3. You will be charged your donation amount and one standard rate message.
"The charity’s specialist team of critical care paramedics, consultant doctors, pilots, engineers, and dispatchers provide vital a rapid response, pre-hospital emergency service, wherever it is needed because every second counts.”
Each day Midlands Air Ambulance Charity attends an average of 10 lifesaving missions across Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, the West Midlands and Worcestershire. This means that across the week it will be dispatched to approximately 70 missions.
“Despite this, the charity is an emergency service funded almost entirely by you," Ms Gray added.
"Your continued support saves the lives of the Midlands' most critically ill or injured. Each of the charity’s air ambulance mission costs approximately £2,500 and the critical care car missions cost an average of £224. All missions are entirely funded by donations, as the charity does not receive Government funding.
“Now more than ever, we need your support to enable us to keep saving the lives of the critically ill and injured across the Midlands and in parts of Gloucestershire.
“Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have faced many challenges, including a significant drop in donations as the economic effects of the pandemic take hold. Our crew have not stopped. Therefore, we urge that your support for air ambulance charities does not stop.”
