THERE will be new blood on board air ambulances as a life-saving technique is trialled in the region.
From today, the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS) will carry defrosted fresh frozen plasma (FFP) on board its aircraft.
Major trauma patients across the North-East will benefit as a result of the changes, which will see plasma used alongside blood to offer patients a better chance of survival.
Red blood cells already carried enable medics to give rapid transfusions on board or at the roadside.
The additional plasma provides vital clotting components which will help blood clots to form and stop bleeding.
GNAAS is one of the first ambulance charities in the UK to carry the plasma.
Consultant Dr Rachel Hawes, the GNAAS aircrew doctor who brought ‘blood on board’ to the region, said: “To carry out a regional programme of this scale, across one of the most challenging geographical areas in the UK, takes great dedication and strong collaborative working.
“Blood, and now pre-hospital plasma on board the GNAAS aircraft, simply wouldn’t be feasible without the strength of our partnerships and without the support of the public, whose donations make it all possible.”
A three-month trial will begin today (Tuesday, May 24) and will see cool boxes containing two units of blood and two of plasma delivered daily to GNAAS airfields.
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