Our Impact News DSAA celebrates four finalists in the Air Ambulance Awards of Excellence We are proud to announce that four members of Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance (DSAA) have been shortlisted for the prestigious Air Ambulance Awards of Excellence 2024, organised by Air Ambulances UK. These awards celebrate and recognise the specialist life-saving skills and commitments of those working within the air ambulance community. Our finalists Dr. Laura Bland – Shortlisted for Critical Care Doctor of the Year Dr Laura Bland has been shortlisted as a finalist in the Critical Care Doctor of the Year category. Laura spends half her time as part of DSAA’s critical care team and half her time as an Emergency Medicine Consultant at Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton. Over the past year, Laura has delivered the highest possible quality of medical care to patients and led the Pre-Hospital Emergency Medicine (PHEM) Training Programme for DSAA. She is also the national lead for PHEM examinations for the Intercollegiate Board for Training in Pre-hospital Emergency Medicine (IBTPHEM) and pre-hospital examinations for the Faculty of Pre-Hospital Care (FPHC) - both are voluntary roles. Laura has been a central part of supporting and enabling a region-wide campaign to increase awareness of pre-hospital critical care and how it can help patients receive timely and life-changing interventions. Her positive impact has been felt by the patients and families that she cares for, the trainees that she nurtures and the national exams system that she has devoted herself to sustaining and developing. Neil Bizzell – Shortlisted for Critical Care Practitioner of the Year Specialist Practitioner, Neil Bizzell, has been shortlisted as a finalist for Critical Care Practitioner of the Year. Neil continues to provide exemplary patient care and reflects carefully on the development opportunities from each patient encounter, continually striving for improvement. He leads the DSAA Outreach Programme devoting significant time (often on a voluntary basis) to enhancing DSAA operations and enabling the right patient to receive the right care, at the right moment. The Outreach Programme has become highly inclusive, accessible and regionally trusted. Without it, the care provided to patients across the region would be significantly diminished. Neil is a champion for patients, whether he is personally caring for them, or whether they are benefitting from the care systems that he has supercharged. Gillian Bryce – Shortlisted for the Lifetime Achievement Award Gillian Bryce has been on DSAA’s Board of Trustees since 2014. She has been Chair of Trustees since 2019 and will retire from this position in 2025. Gillian’s life has been dedicated to the field of Emergency Medicine and she has been an advocate for pre-hospital patients and their families within the South West for three decades. Her dedicated service extends far beyond her professional career, having also worked selflessly in a voluntary capacity throughout her life. Gillian has led collaboratively and compassionately, searching for common ground, making balanced judgements and always shouldering responsibility. Her outstanding contribution to the development of air ambulance delivered critical care in the South West and the ongoing maturation, stability and sustainability of this care makes her impact extra-ordinary. She has inspired the next generation of leaders to believe that compassionate transformational change is possible. Gillian is shortlisted as a finalist in this year’s very special Lifetime Achievement Award. Tom Budgett – Shortlisted for Charity Supporter of the Year The final shortlisted nomination is for Tom Budgett in the Charity Supporter of the Year category. This award is given in recognition of the dedication and commitment made by an individual which has had a significance impact on an air ambulance charity over the past year. Tom’s name will be unknown to many of those who work within or support air ambulance charities, however, many of the management teams, CEOs and certainly the providers of air ambulance aviation services, will know his name well. Tom has given so much commitment, invaluable legal expertise and urgent availability to not just DSAA, but many other air ambulance charities for several years, asking for no recognition or reward in return. We couldn’t be prouder of the extraordinary work of our team and supporters. Their commitment to saving lives and improving patient care is at the heart of everything we do at DSAA. We look forward to celebrating the winners at the Air Ambulance Awards of Excellence ceremony on Thursday 28th November 2024. To see the full list of categories and finalists, visit Air Ambulances UK’s website: www.airambulancesuk.org/awards-shortlist-2024/ Stay tuned to our social media channels for updates from the event and to cheer on our incredible finalists! Manage Cookie Preferences