Manx Care has confirmed how it plans to respond to TT 2024, which is without question the busiest time of the year for our health and care services.
In response to the increase in demand, the Emergency Department (ED) at Noble’s Hospital will bring in additional nursing and medical cover to provide an enhanced Trauma Team response as well as capacity to manage all other people who present there requiring urgent or emergency care.
Manx Care has been working alongside colleagues at the Aintree Major Trauma Centre and The Walton Centre for Neurosciences, which will provide support for patients who have suffered severe and multiple injuries and require urgent off-Island transfer. Medical transfers of those requiring specialist care will be facilitated either by Manx Care’s fixed wing air ambulance service (who are ready to respond 24/7 to support the racing and the public) once a patient has been stabilised for transfer at Noble’s or by the team from GNAAS (the Great North Air Ambulance Service) who are able to fly directly to the scene of an incident to deliver advanced pre-hospital care and, where necessary, transfer the person directly to a specialist hospital in the North West, or to Noble’s Hospital. The GNAAS helicopters will be based at Langwathby in Cumbria or Eaglescliffe in County Durham, on standby to fly to the Island if needed.
The Noble’s Hospital Orthopaedic trauma teams are staffed for the increase in demand, with additional orthopaedic trauma surgeons in place to support the Noble’s team every day during the event as required.
The Critical Care Unit is fully staffed across the TT period to accommodate those who are critically ill and injured prior to their transfer to the UK.
Additional Radiology support has been secured given the predicted increase in demand at Ramsey and District Cottage Hospital and for urgent diagnostic assessment, particularly in the case of major trauma incidents, with additional blood products having been ordered in the event that emergency blood transfusions are required.
The Isle of Man Ambulance Service (IMAS) is predicting another busy year, and will receive mutual aid, with two colleagues arriving from the Isle of Wight and one from Guernsey. As well as the usual land-based Ambulances, the service will have access to a full fleet of emergency response vehicles including critical care cars, rapid response cars and the A99 helicopter to allow them to reach non-racing incidents in hard-to-reach locations as quickly as possible. A99 will be staffed by emergency medics from Manx Care.
Alongside this, one Paramedic from GNAAS will be joining IMAS over the fortnight, and will be partnered with IMAS crew members every day to support their response. The TT response will be overseen by senior IMAS Duty Managers operating across a 24/7 shift pattern. The team will be ready to respond on the phone, by road or by air to those who need them most.
The Minor Injuries and Illnesses Unit (MIU) at Ramsey and District Cottage Hospital will be fully staffed to include both Medical and non-Medical Prescribers across the fortnight, as well as X-Ray provision. This service will be critical in supporting the people living in the North of the Island, as well as people who can travel there easily for assessment and treatment. Anyone with a minor injury or illness who can be assessed at Ramsey should continue to use that service during TT in order to reduce pressure on the ED at Noble’s Hospital.
Wherever possible, normal services are being maintained across Noble’s Hospital such as outpatient appointments, blood tests, endoscopy, x-rays and planned operations, with only our orthopaedic service being significantly affected due to the TT event. We ask members of the public who are attending Noble’s or Ramsey Hospitals for a planned appointment to leave plenty of time for your journey, particularly during road closure periods and to contact the Patient Information Centre on +44 1624 650103 if you are unable to attend your appointment.
Manx Care’s signposting brochure highlights all of the services that are available to people who require healthcare support across the TT, covering GP provision, Community Pharmacy provision, emergency Dental and Optical services, community-based mental health services and the importance of self-care. This is available in six languages – English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Polish – and can be accessed at manxcare.im or gov.im/signposting.
Oliver Radford, Manx Care’s Executive Director of Health Services, commented:
‘We’ve been working on our TT response since Autumn 2023 and aim to continually improve our plan year on year to provide the highest quality care to those who need it during the event whilst trying to maintain ‘business as usual’ services to our local population despite the additional 50,000 people on the island. I hope residents and visitors will feel reassured that we will be there for them if they need us.’
Manx Care is reminding all visitors to the Island to make sure they have adequate health insurance in place to cover the duration of their trip in the event this may be needed, and to bring all prescription medications and any other medical items they may use daily at home with them on their visit.
