LIFESAVING MISSION

In May 2024, Claire was out for a ride with her horse, Emy, on a field behind Claire’s house when Emy was startled and reared up, getting one of her legs stuck in the mud. “She started sinking, lost her balance and fell over backwards, causing me to fall tothe ground. Emy landed on top of me and I remember her struggling to roll to get up and, in the process, standing on my chest. I passed out from the pain as Emy galloped off.”

Due to the severity of the accident – particularly the injury to Claire’s pelvis which carried a risk of internal bleeding – and her location in the field, which was difficult to get access to and too far from the road for paramedics to be able carry her, an air ambulance was dispatched. “I rang my husband and he walked down to the field while Louisa caught Emy. She got both horses out of the field as the air ambulance was landing, which was less than ten minutes from her calling for help.” Yorkshire Air Ambulance’s Critical Care Team promptly administered morphine to manage Claire’s pain and monitored her vital signs. They then gave her ketamine for pain relief.

Yorkshire Air Ambulance’s team transported Claire to James Cook University Hospital in Middlesborough in a matter of minutes. After ten days in hospital, where Claire was given lots of physiotherapy and taught to walk properly on the Zimmer frame then on crutches, she was discharged.

Claire gradually progressed from walking with two crutches, to using one crutch, to walking unaided. “Although I can now weight bear on my right leg, I’m still in quite a lot of discomfort as the SI joint (sacroiliac joint, which is the joint between the sacrum and the ilium bones of the pelvis) hasn’t yet reattached to my sacrum so it is still unstable, which causes pain. I also still get problems with the strength in my right arm and the range of movement is limited, and my physiotherapist thinks I might have torn one of the main muscle groups in my shoulder so is trying to help this with physiotherapy.”

“It’s been a very difficult journey since the accident in lots of ways, but I feel very grateful and positive that it wasn’t worse. I think things would have been very different without the help of Yorkshire Air Ambulance, as without them I don’t knowhow they would have got me out of that field, and I can only imagine that the pain and longer process of driving on the road in an ambulance would have been a lot more traumatic. The passion and skill of the Yorkshire Air Ambulance team and the way they deal with all that they do is absolutely incredible. They really are amazing and I can’t thank them enough for what they did for me.”

THE CANDIS BIG GIVE AMOUNT RAISED: £20,855

• Yorkshire Air Ambulance (YAA) provides emergency response air ambulances across Yorkshire. It is a crucial lifesaving charity dedicated to providing rapid emergency medical care across three million acres, serving more than five million people. YAA employs 16 aviation staff and works alongside 28 medics. They each require their own helmet and two flight suits.
• The charity will use the money raised in the Candis Big Give to purchase 12 flight suits and six night-vision-capable aviation helmets for YAA aviation staff and medics. Attending urban and rural incidents, crew need their helmets and flight suits to protect them as they carry out their roles. Personal protective clothing is vital for everyone’s safety.
• Its aircraft are fully night capable and can operate longer operating hours in winter months and after dark. Night vision goggles (NVGs) are a mandatory equirement for flying at night and are mounted on to aircrew’s helmets via permanent fittings. Without these, the aircraft cannot fly after dark.
• Correctly fitted and suitable equipment helps to ensure faster helicopter take-off times and allows crews to work day and night in all weathers, often in extreme circumstances, helping to save lives at the scene.
• Visit yorkshireairambulance.org.uk