GNAAS make one final fundraising push to reach 24/7 goal

This week we’ve launched several fundraisers on Facebook which could help fund essential pieces of equipment which are used in and around our cars to make our life-saving night shifts possible.

Last year, our critical care teams based in Eaglescliffe, in the North East, and Langwathby, Penrith in Cumbria responded to 745 incidents during the night-time on their rapid response vehicles.

If they had not been covering those evenings, that’s potentially 745 patients who would have not received the advanced level of care that GNAAS can bring to the scene.

In order to continue responding during the night, we must have reliable cars, impeccable training, the best equipment, and ultimately, money.

To roll this service out across Cumbria and continue funding it throughout the North East, it will cost our charity nearly £500,000 annually.

In light of this, we currently have separate fundraisers on our Facebook page asking the public to help fund some of the items we need to operate on a night-time.

Here is a summary of what these items are:

Fuel

Without fuel, our teams simply can’t travel across the region to get those in need – it’s that simple. On average, it costs £642 each week to keep our cars running and our teams responding to incidents when our helicopters are locked away in the hangers.

Portable lighting system

This portable light system is crucial for illuminating night-time incidents, enabling our teams to perform advanced procedures with precision.

Our light systems are indispensable when our teams attend road traffic collisions. In 2023, we attended 175 RTCs at night, and in these critical moments, our portable lighting equipment enables our doctor and paramedic teams to execute life-saving interventions.

Patients involved in a car accident often acquire an array of injuries which require treatments ranging from blood transfusions, drug therapy, and complex surgical interventions like amputations; we bring the hospital to the roadside, and we need sufficient lighting to enhance the success of these procedures.

Blue light bar

We only respond to the region’s most ill and injured patients, so when you see our blue lights illuminating from a distance, you know someone is in urgent need of our care. You could save someone’s life when you donate towards our blue light bar.

Our blue light bar alerts the general public to move aside and give way, as our specially trained paramedics can travel over 100mph to get to a patient in need.

Speed, in these situations, can mean the difference between life and death – the sooner our teams get to a patient, the sooner they are able to perform life-saving interventions by the roadside.

Tyres

We cover the whole of the North – 8,000 square miles of rugged landscapes, and millions of people depending on our care.

Our helicopters can cruise over the region within minutes with ease, but our critical care cars need to combat ice, snow, rain, and mud; we must invest in robust and reliable tyres to support our service on the road.

The tyres are a feature on our cars which are often taken for granted, but without frequent replacements to ensure they’re roadworthy, we wouldn’t be able to save lives into the night.

Our doctor and paramedic teams travel up to 2,180 miles each week, and our rapid response vehicles’ wheels are to thank for it – today, you could help to fund a new set and help us save lives across the North.

Livery

Have you ever spotted our iconic green, yellow, and white brand colours on our vehicles and taken great comfort in knowing our service will always be there should you need us?

That’s just one of the reasons the livery on our cars is incredibly important. The reflective wrap lets the general public know we’re responding to someone who is urgently in need of our critical care service.

These cars save people’s lives, and you could play a huge part in helping us to achieve 24/7 care.

To support the fundraisers and find out more about each piece of kit, visit our Facebook page.