BAOMS 2020 President Elect Rob Bentley appointed Vice President of the HELP Appeal
18 April 2019 (Last updated: 4 May 2020 13:17)
PRESS RELEASE
Rob Bentley, Clinical Director South East London Kent and Medway Major Trauma Network and cranio-oral and maxillofacial surgeon at King’s College Hospital, has today been appointed the new HELP Appeal Vice President. The announcement was made as the charity’s Chief Executive Robert Bertram presented the penultimate instalment of £250,000 towards the construction and building costs of the King’s helipad (see photo attached).
Rob Bentley first approached the HELP Appeal for financial support in 2012 to help build the King’s rooftop helipad, which opened in 2016. The charity also funded the installation of the first ever Deck Integrated Fire Fighting System (DIFFS) for the King’s helipad.
Rob Bentley explained that previously air ambulances landed in a nearby park and patients had a 25-minute ambulance journey by road to King’s College Hospital: “The helipad opened in October 2016 and now patients can fly from Margate to King’s in 25 minutes. The HELP Appeal has played a huge part in helping King’s save lives.”
As the new HELP Appeal Vice President, Rob says he is committed to raising awareness about the importance of hospital helipads and DIFFS: “The King’s helipad has transformed patients’ access to trauma care.”
Announcing Rob Bentley’s appointment as the HELP Appeal Vice President, Chief Executive Robert Bertram said he was delighted that Rob Bentley accepted the invitation: “He has always been a huge advocate of the charity within the NHS and will undoubtedly continue to raise awareness about the HELP Appeal and encourage hospitals that urgently need our help to get in touch.”
King’s College Hospital received planning permission in February this year to run night flights, which means more critically ill patients can be treated immediately, and more lives are saved.
Ends
Photo shows: Rob Bentley (left), Clinical Director South East London Kent and Medway Major Trauma Network and cranio-oral and maxillofacial surgeon at King’s College Hospital, pictured with Sir Hugh Taylor, interim chair of King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (centre) and Robert Bertram, Chief Executive of the HELP Appeal.
For further information and interviews contact: Siân Evans on 020 8674 8921 / 07752 414433 or BAOMS on 020 7405 8074
Notes to editors
- The British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (BAOMS) promotes the advancement of education, research and the development of oral and maxillofacial Surgery in Great Britain, and encourages and assists postgraduate education, study and research. BAOMS homepage
- In 2010, Rob Bentley became clinical director of the South East London Trauma Network and for King’s College Hospital Major Trauma Centre for 2.5 million people.
- Rob Bentley is a cranio-oral and maxillofacial surgeon at King’s College Hospital, and British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial (BAOMS) 2020 President Elect.
- The Evening Standard cited Rob Bentley as one of London’s most influential people in medicine in 2016.
- The HELP Appeal is the only charity in the country dedicated to funding hospital helipads. Since 2009 the HELP Appeal has instigated and driven a number of projects that are now helping to save lives and improve a patient’s chances of a full recovery. To date the HELP Appeal has funded 15 new helipads that have now had 10,249 landings. Further information about the HELP Appeal
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