Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter flies six times for patients in Gisborne area

The Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter refuels at Waikato Hospital, where the team transported two seriously ill patients last week.

Despite tricky weather conditions, the Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter team successfully completed six missions in the seven days to Sunday.

On the first day of the week they responded to a medical event at Te Araroa at 1.43pm, with the patient flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

Just after midday the following day they transported a patient who was in a serious condition after suffering a medical event, from Gisborne to Waikato Hospital.

At 2.30pm on May 9, they were back in the air, responding to a trauma at Ruatōria where the patient was flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

On Saturday, May 11 the team was recalled to Ruatōria, again in response to a trauma, with the patient flown in serious condition to Gisborne Hospital.

And on Sunday they completed two missions, the first at 12.06pm transporting a patient who had suffered a medical event from Gisborne to Waikato Hospital then the second at 4pm, when they flew direct from Hamilton to a medical event in Hicks Bay, from where the patient was taken in serious condition to Gisborne Hospital.

“While the service was originally founded to carry out lifesaving work in rural and remote areas, hospital transfers – contracted by Te Whatu Ora – are also a critical part of the team’s work,” trust chairman Patrick Willock said.

“It means vulnerable patients can be transported directly from one hospital’s door to another, reducing trauma at what might be one of the most challenging times of their lives.”