The Ramsey and District Cottage Hospital (RDCH) Welfare Trustees have made a donation to help fund a helicopter loading path. The path has been laid on the field adjacent to the Hospital, which is used as a loading area for the Air Ambulance helicopter.
The Department of Health and Social Care welcomed the donation of £2,000 from the RDCH Welfare Trustees to have the path installed following staff suggestion that it would allow a much smoother handover of the patient from ambulance to helicopter.
Isle of Man Ambulance Clinical Manager, Steve Crowe said:
'We are grateful to the Ramsey and District Cottage Hospital Welfare Trustees who have once again supported the work of both the Hospital and the Isle of Man Ambulance Service. This most recent donation to fund a pathway to the helicopter field will help to improve the care, treatment and movement of the patient from our vehicle to the aircraft.'
The path extends out into the field to allow stretchers and hospital beds to be rolled right up to the helicopter, reducing the amount of manual handling that staff have to carry out in transferring the patient from the ambulance vehicle to the aircraft.
It is anticipated that the path will be used over 20 times during the year, with the majority of use occurring during race periods of the TT and the Isle of Man Festival of Motorcycling.
Steve continued:
'The support of the Welfare Trustees, which last year donated a vehicle for the ambulance fleet at Ramsey and District Cottage Hospital and contributed to the provision of the LUCAS machines for all ambulances across the Island, is invaluable in enabling the Department to maintain the variety of high standard up-to-date medical equipment within the Island’s Ambulance Service.'
