Air medics' first night call is to heart patient
A man who had suffered a heart attack was flown to hospital by air ambulance in the first night flight by the service in the area.
The 59-year-old from Welshpool collapsed with chest pains on Monday night, with the air ambulance, located at the nearby Mid Wale Airport, summoned for its first ever after-dark flight.
The man was flown to the North Staffordshire University Hospital in Stoke where he is recovering. The Wales Air Ambulance charity said today it was proud to have completed the historic mission.
Jason Williams, national clinical and operations manager for the charity, said the night flight saved the patient's life.
He said: "This is an excellent example of the life saving service provided to the residents and visitors of Wales.
"In this example 'time is muscle' and every minute that the heart muscle is deprived of blood the chances of survival are greatly reduced as the muscle dies.
"It is so frustrating to have previously had to put the aircraft away at night knowing that there are still patients that could benefit from this life saving service, and it is a real boost to be able to extend our flying hours into darkness.
"We all hope this gentleman makes a speedy recovery."
Mr Williams said that thanks to the night flight, the patient made it from Welshpool to Stoke in just 46 minutes, a journey which would take almost two hours by road.
"After receiving an emergency 999 call, Wales Air Ambulance staff quickly diagnosed that the patient was experiencing a heart attack and took 46 minutes to transport the man to the nearest cardiac centre.
"The flight reduced the transport time for this patient by at least an hour compared to traveling on land, and ensured he received a life saving procedure where a cardiac stent was inserted into the coronary arteries to improve blood flow to the heart."
The Wales Air Ambulance began night flight trials at the start of the month, having raised £6 million to upgrade its three aircraft based at Swansea, Welshpool and Caernarfon.
Angela Hughes, Wales Air Ambulance chief executive, said: "The vision of the Wales Air Ambulance is to provide a 24-hour air ambulance operation in Wales, this is an exciting step towards that vision.
"The charity is extremely pleased that with the continued dedication of its supporters and staff to deliver this life saving service into the hours of darkness."
