University Hospitals of North Midlands Major Trauma Centre is the first in the UK to benefit from a weather station which provides certainty and real time information for emergency helicopter pilots about weather conditions, ensuring that its patients are seen quicker and with more efficiency.

The weather station, called “Skyview”, which has been donated by the HELP Appeal, which is the only charity in the country dedicated to funding hospital helipads, measures visibility and conditions around the Royal Stoke University Hospital site and helps ambulance crews understand the next steps for our critically injured patients, making sure they are air lifted to the most appropriate trauma centre avoiding bad weather conditions that can make flying difficult.

Martyn Ashworth, Major Trauma & Neurosurgery Service Manager at UHNM, said: “I would like to thank the HELP Appeal for this generous donation, our Major Trauma team is extremely excited about having the first ever weather station at a NHS trust in the UK and we want to share that excitement with the local community and surrounding areas.

“Our aim is to provide the pilots and flying medical crews with the latest local weather information and provide them with the most up to date and accurate facilities we can, bringing the most advanced, innovative and comprehensive resources directly into the forefront of Trauma care.”

Robert Bertram, Chief Executive of the charity’s HELP Appeal, said: “We are delighted that we have funded the first ever weather station for a UK Major Trauma Centre, which means patients can receive more efficient care. As the weather station informs air ambulance crews of the conditions at Royal Stoke, it can accurately inform them if it’s safe to land on Royal Stoke’s helipad or if they need to be transferred to a surrounding hospital. This will save precious time, a must when a patient urgently needs specialist care to help save their life.”