Great North Air Ambulance extends paramedic service to 24/7

The Great North Air Ambulance will run a paramedic and doctor car every night of the week

The Great North Air Ambulance (GNAAS) says it will now be providing 24/7 paramedic and doctor services.

The charity, based at Eaglescliffe, Stockton, said it will run a car at night when its helicopter cannot fly to help the "most ill or injured people".

The service will cover the North East while plans are afoot to roll it out in Cumbria "in the near future", chief executive David Stockton said.

GNAAS had covered four nights a week since 2018.

A spokeswoman said the helicopter could operate 08:00 to 20:00 in summer and daylight hours in winter responding to incidents such as car crashes or major medical emergencies.

In 2015 GNAAS started using a car on Friday and Saturday nights which saw "high demand", the spokeswoman said, prompting a "long-term ambition to cover every night of the week".

Dr Chris Smith, medical director at GNAAS, said the car would carry the same equipment as the aircraft meaning crew could "deliver blood, anaesthetic procedures and other advanced treatments that are normally delivered while operating on the helicopter".

GNAAS' critical care team was deployed 538 times in the car in 2022 to incidents across the North East, including road traffic collisions, assaults and cardiac arrests.

The service currently costs £7.7m a year to run so GNAAS will aim to raise more funds, Mr Stockton said.

"We're grateful for everyone who has either donated or fundraised for our charity over the last 20 years, as they have enabled us to reach this fantastic milestone, among many other significant milestones along the way," he said.