DAA extends emergency service hours
Devon Air Ambulance has announced that, with immediate effect, its emergency service will fly until 02:00 hrs every day of the week.
Devon Air Ambulance (DAA) in the UK has announced that, with immediate effect, its emergency service will fly until 02:00 hrs every day of the week. DAA’s Chief Executive Heléna Holt said that this extension of the service’s operating hours represents a step towards DAA’s goal of eventually providing Devon with a 24-hour emergency air ambulance service. “There isn’t a timescale yet for when this will be, but it remains one of our key objectives,” she said.
Back in 2016, DAA extended the flying hours for its Exeter aircraft to midnight and has since assisted 118 patients during the hours of darkness. Nigel Hare, DAA’s Operations Director, said: “Flying into the hours of darkness isn’t necessarily about flying the patient to hospital. It’s also about getting the right specialist care to the patient, quickly. Our community landing sites across the county allow us to land at a pre-surveyed site, with lighting that we can turn on and off by using just a mobile pDevon Air Ambulance hone, saving vital minutes. Our doctors and specialist paramedics can administer essential treatment.”