Bex Ponter

Dr Jasmit Mohindru was part of the team that cared for Bex along with Paramedic Dean Bateman:

A call came through to say that a Critical Care Paramedic (CCP) for SECAmb was with a patient who was critically unwell and who had an airway that was at risk of becoming obstructed.

We headed straight out to the helicopter and the pilots flew us to the scene, near Rochester. We arrived within 19 minutes of being airborne. There was, helpfully, an open field across the road that we were able to land in – crossing the road we approached the house, where we were met with the SECAmb clinician who had requested our help.

We rely on having a bit of space to effectively assess the people we treat, and to perform the interventions we sometimes need to, so whilst the patient was being brought quickly out of the house by the paramedics we received an update from the CCP.

When the ambulance service had first arrived, Bex looked blue; her oxygen levels were dangerously low and she was going to need assistance with her breathing (ventilation) if they were to improve.

We spoke with Rebecca’s family and explained that she needed to be given an anaesthetic to be put to sleep, so that we could pass a tube from her mouth into her windpipe, to allow us to ventilate her properly and help deliver the oxygen she so badly needed to her vital organs.

This isn’t a procedure that the road crew would have been able to administer so it was absolutely critical that we were able to be there for Bex when she needed us. We have a doctor and paramedic on board every flight and we work closely together alongside our SECAmb colleagues in circumstances like this, when every second counts, to deliver critical, life-saving interventions for our patients.

We set up our equipment and trolley and quickly delivered the anaesthetic and intubation, before helping to move the trolley onto the ambulance and accompany Rebecca and the paramedic team to her local hospital.

Bex says she and her family now feel very much part of the KSS family:

We have a video doorbell so we have picture of them treating me in the front garden and footage of the helicopter taking off. I’ve got a screenshot of an article that appeared online, so I feel like I remember it, but I don’t. I was really surprised to learn that I was so bad that I needed the Air Ambulance. Everyone else in the family has really vivid memories of what happened, and it’s had a big impact on all our lives.

Martin loves volunteering for KSS, and it’s lovely to watch him talking to people and getting the word out there. He knows all the facts and figures. I’m so glad they were there for us that day. Our son William has played in a charity football match that raised money for KSS.

The support we have had from KSS’s Patient and Family Aftercare Team since the incident has been really important in helping us all come to terms with what happened.