2020 Annual Report
FACING A PANDEMIC
2020 Annual Report
LIFEFLIGHT OF MAINE
AND THE LIFEFLIGHT FOUNDATION
Setting the course for a brighter future
From LifeFlight Foundation Executive Director Kate O’Halloran
There is little doubt that after the year we all had, the saying “hindsight is 20/20” takes on a whole new meaning. The last twelve months have caused many of us to experience an enormously wide range of emotions, as we were forced to carefully navigate a complex and constantly shifting landscape. Through it all, we came to appreciate the simple yet immensely important gifts of family, health, nature, compassion, empathy, resilience, and perhaps most especially, generosity.
On behalf of all of us at the Foundation, the entire LifeFlight of Maine crew, and all the patients and families who we helped in the past year, we hope you take great pride in knowing what a difference your generosity has made. 3,651 donors answered our call for help, sending in not only much needed funds but also a plethora of creative, kind, and thoughtful notes.
Making sure LifeFlight is there in a moment of need
From LifeFlight of Maine Executive Director Thomas Judge and Medical Director Norm Dinerman, MD
Each year we share our annual report to highlight where we have been, important milestones we have reached, and our plans for the year ahead.
2020 was a very different year.
In the early months of the winter we were closely watching reports of a novel respiratory virus beginning to sweep the world and making preparations to respond. At the same time we were pushing forward on a new replacement aircraft contract, implementing a new national demonstration project with the Federal Aviation Administration on ‘next gen’ precision helicopter navigation, and partnering with Northern Maine Community College, Aroostook County hospitals and EMS services with our first external Critical Care Academy.
In the first two weeks of March we were busy. We met with the FAA in Washington DC to discuss the ‘next gen’ project, we finished Part 2 of the Critical Care Academy in Presque Isle, and led the annual US Helicopter Safety Team Aviation Infrastructure Summit in Washington DC. Then on March 13th, just as our teaching team and new LifeFlight orientees returned from Aroostook County and we returned from DC, everything changed. On March 17th LifeFlight transported our first known COVID-19 patient. SARS Co-V-2 upended all of our lives and required quick re-calibration, rapidly evolving science, and rigorous, rigorous practice to get through safely.
Meeting the challenge
Covid-19 Response
Transporting patients during a pandemic requires new procedures and protocols -- and a lot of teamwork to keep everyone safe
Learn More
Map Your Impact
LifeFlight's dedicated and generous donors make a direct impact on the lives of thousands of patients each and every year
Learn More
