The region’s air ambulance has it all wrapped up this Christmas thanks to a generous donation by a North-East packaging firm.
Adopting a technique devised in warzones, the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS) is utilising bubble wrap to insulate seriously ill patients.
The charity is now carrying the material alongside more high-tech life-saving instruments on all its flights, thanks to a North-East manufacturer.
Taylor Packaging, in Spennymoor, regularly donates spools of bubble wrap whenever the GNAAS medics are running low.
Lead paramedic at GNAAS, Jane Peacock, said the material is vital in keeping patients’ body temperatures at a stable level on their critical journey to hospital.
She added: “We have military doctors who have seen the benefits of bubble wrap used in Afghanistan, so we decided to utilise it here. When a patient is cold and seriously injured the quicker they get warm the better.
“Traumatised patients lose their body heat rapidly and bubble wrap provides the most effective means of preserving body heat, it is simply invaluable.
“Believe it or not, bubble wrap can be quite expensive when bought for medical use. We are getting the same material for free, so we are hugely grateful.”
Taylor Packaging is an independent distributor and manufacturer of packaging materials.
Owner at Taylor Packaging, Steven Taylor said: “We wanted to help the local area. The air ambulance save lives and we’re happy to assist them in doing that.”
For anyone who would like to support the Great North Air Ambulance Service visit http://www.greatnorthairambulance.co.uk/ or call 01325 487 263.
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