Beeline: Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance Magazine, Spring 2016

why we do it
Sharing your story
Ben Ollis was three
and a half when
he was kicked
in the head by a
horse. His family
shared their story
and featured in a
previous edition
of Beeline. Ben’s
full story, among
others, can be
found on our
website
ver the years, our Beeline magazine has showed
O
the many different ways that people support
the Charity. There are those that challenge
themselves to take part in sky dives, climb mountains
or run marathons and those that hold events on our
behalf to raise funds. There are children that donate their
pocket money, volunteers who work tirelessly throughout
the year to help us and thousands of you who sign up for
our Flight for Life Lottery. These are just a few ways that
people help us and without every single one of you, we
would not be able to help so many others.
Within each issue you will also read some incredible
stories of courage and determination from the patients
we have helped. They have all been provided by the
individuals or their friends and family members and play
a crucial part in helping to raise awareness of the work
we do.
You may be unaware that due to patient
confidentiality, we cannot hold patient records. That
means that unless the patients we have helped get in
touch with us, we have no way of knowing the full impact
of our service.
We appreciate that reliving an incident can sometimes
be traumatic, but in our experience, we have found that
many patients get comfort from telling their tale. Some
are re-united with the crew who played a part on the day
and in most cases they become friends and supporters of
the Charity.
The process of getting in touch is simple and our
patients are under no obligation to disclose anything that
they would not want to be published or shared. So if you,
or anyone you know, has been airlifted or treated by our
team, we would be delighted to hear from you.
There are a number of ways in which this can be done.
You could give a personal account of the events on the
day by email, phone or letter – or alternatively arrange a
time for us to call or visit you at home.
So please, if you have had an experience you would
like to share, contact our Communications Manager, Tracy
Bartram, by email: tracy.bartram@dsairambulance.org.uk
by phone: 01823 669604 or by letter: DSAA, Landacre
House, Castle Road, Chelston Business Park, Wellington,
Somerset, TA21 9JQ.
Thank you!
22 01823 669604 | www.dsairambulance.org.uk