Record workload for expanded Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance

The launch of our second life-saving helicopter in the spring of last year helped Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance respond to a record number of emergencies in 2020.

Throughout the past year, our charity-funded life-saving service responded to more time-critical emergencies than ever before, flying a record number of seriously ill and injured patients to advanced hospital care from every part of the country.

From our operational bases at Perth and Aberdeen, SCAA's crews deployed to 460 life-threatening emergencies - a 31% increase on the previous year's workload.

Responses to serious trauma cases increased by 41% - again dominating SCAA's mission log and accounting for 47% (217) of all the year's call outs. Of those trauma emergencies, 46% were to road traffic collisions (99).

Crews were quickly on scene at crises throughout the whole of Scotland, tending the seriously sick and injured and flying or escorting a total of 193 to definitive hospital care.

In addition to airlifting patients to hospital, SCAA's paramedics were on scene to treat and assist in cases ranging from major multiple casualty trauma incidents to single patient illnesses in remote and rural locations.

During 2020, SCAA was airborne for a total of over 461 hours (+111), flying critical pre-hospital care to communities throughout mainland Scotland and many of its islands.

As well as attending RTCs, the crews' workload last year also included 84 cardiac related emergencies, 21 strokes, 62 falls, 17 industrial accidents (including agricultural) and six emergencies involving burns.

A further 60 call outs involved air transfers from remote or island locations to advanced mainland hospital care where hours were saved on journey times for vulnerable patients.

SCAA impacted on the outcome for sick and injured from the Hebrides and Orkney to Aberdeenshire and The Borders.

The majority of emergencies attended by the charity's distinctive air ambulance helicopters were in Grampian (27%), Tayside (25%) and Highland (19%) health board areas.

Patients helped by SCAA ranged from babies to the elderly, with the majority being adults aged 18-64 (60%) and 32% involving patients aged over 65.

SCAA also attended 16 emergencies involving infants under the age of three, 12 children aged 4-12 and seven teenagers aged 13-17.

SCAA's 2020 mission log shows that the emergency response helicopter's busiest month was August, while Fridays saw the greatest demand for the charity service.

Throughout 2020, SCAA airlifted patients to hospitals throughout the country - the most visited being Major Trauma Centres at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary; Ninewells, Dundee, and the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital at Glasgow (receiving patients from 28%, 24% and 13% of all emergency airlifts respectively).

A total of 13 hospitals from Orkney to Newcastle were visited by SCAA to hand over seriously sick and injured patients.

Responding by both land as well as air, SCAA paramedics attended 65 emergencies in their Rapid Response Vehicle - 14% of the year's call outs.