An Cosantóir

22 THE EMERGENCY AEROMEDICAL SERVICE: IRELAND'S FIRST HEMS exposure to trauma and, unfortunately, death. The very first EAS call, conducted on June 4th 2012, illustrated that point. The call was for an elderly man in cardiac arrest in the midlands. We landed at the scene, shut - down the aircraft and the AP went to assist the NAS ground crew. With the AP gone I prepared the aircraft for the next leg, per SOP. All going to plan so far, all per SOP. Then I was informed that the patient had expired. Again, not unusual and to be expected, per our training, per SOP. I got ready to return to Athlone when a number of cars pulled up and around 15 peo - ple ran to the deceased man. His sons, daughters and grandchildren. There was a lot of tears at the scene, he had not been previously sick and his family were in shock and mourning in the shadow of the helicopter. A few minutes later I was flying back to Athone, stay - ing focussed on the job in hand and trying to shake off the scene of grief and distress I had just left, we had no SOP for this. This first task showed me the difference between Air Ambulance and HEMS work, it wasn't the blood that affected me but the tears. Later that afternoon, on the first day of service we got another call, a farmer that had been gored by a bull in Roscommon. We assisted the NAS ground crew and brought the patient to Galway at speed and in comfort. The first day reflected the experiences of many EAS crews in the first few years, the mixture of satisfaction and frustration. In those formative years we could rely on our integrated APs, who after years on ground ambulances had been exposed to a high incidence of trauma and mortality. Their experience, knowledge and professionalism, continues to serve a vital role in the success of EAS. The trust that developed between No.3 Ops Wing and the NAS prior to the service going live was soon tested, when the first helicopter we used, an EC135, struck wires on landing to pick up a patient in Borri - soleigh, just two weeks after the start of the service. Not only did this highlight the risks involved in this type or mission profile but it could have been enough to shake the confidence of any service partner. How - ever, the collaborative relationship we had worked on with the NAS proved beneficial, the NAS just wanted to know what our plan to get back on track was. This trust allowed us to reorient and retrain on the AW139. It provided greater range and speed as well as the increased safety margin of a second pilot. As the service matured our NAS aeromedical dispatch office moved to new offices in Tallaght as part of the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC). The dispatcher acts as our eyes and ears, they task us, keep an eye on us when we are in the air, and help co - ordinate our mission, they are our fifth crew member. The final component of the Athlone detachment is our two technicians who are there, before the rest of us start our shift to get the aircraft ready, are there after we finish to inspect the aircraft for the next day and do a host of duties in between to ensure the smooth running of the operation. In the best tradition of our maintainers in 303 Sqn they do their job outside of the limelight, efficiently, expertly, assuredly. EAS is the tip of an iceberg, what is below the surface and unseen is the host of support services, both in Baldonnel and within Custume Barracks that help keep the show on the road. EAS has been tasked over 6,200 times in the last 10 years and plans are underway to resource the opera - tion so that it is sustainable in the long term. The advanced paramedic keeping a close watch on the patient and her precious cargo! Sometimes the aircraft will have to land where they can, in this case a road, to get to the scene.

• Cover