A local Bundaberg family has been reunited with the LifeFlight critical care doctor and Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) flight paramedic that saved 19-year-old daughter Emilie Goodwin’s life after a brain bleed.
Emilie and mum Amanda Ball are guests at this year’s annual Soiree in the Hangar at the LifeFlight Bundaberg Base.
In June 2024, Amanda found Emilie unconscious in the bathroom of their family home.
Amanda called an ambulance and she accompanied Emilie to Bundaberg Base Hospital, where she was told her daughter needed to be urgently airlifted to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital in Brisbane.
LifeFlight critical care Doctor Aaron Quay and QAS flight paramedic Kevin Charteris travelled to the local hospital and began working on Emilie.
Amanda said Kevin’s caring and compassionate reassurance during such a traumatic event was amazing.
“He saw my face and came over and told me, ‘it’s alright, we’re going to get you to Brisbane and I’m going to be in the helicopter with Emilie’,” she said.
“He explained what was happening to Emilie and said she had a brain bleed and cerebral hemorrhage.
“He was caring. He was honest. And as a parent, when you have no idea what is happening to your child, it is a sense of relief that they are in caring hands, that he was treating Emilie with the utmost dignity.”
Eight months later, Emilie’s recovery has astounded her neurosurgeons and brought closure to her family after meeting the crew that saved her.
“I was so happy to meet Kevin and Dr Aaron,” Emilie said.
“They saved my life. I was beyond excited to sit in the helicopter that flew me to Brisbane when I was sick, and I loved how I got to pretend to fly it.”
Kevin said seeing Emilie walk into the hangar so bright and full of life was a gratifying experience.
“When Emile and her mum gave me a huge tight hug and said thank you, it brought tears of joy to my eyes,” he said.
“Without the highly-trained medical staff and LifeFlight on the day of Emilie’s brain bleed, she might not have been here with us today.
“Emilie and her family have powered through a long rehabilitation program and it is so great to hear that Emilie is back at work. She is such a super star.”
Amanda said meeting the people that helped save her daughter was ‘lifechanging’.
“From a mother’s perspective, it was such a healing moment and a lot of closure finding out exactly what and why they did what they did for Emilie on that fateful morning,” she said.
“After a traumatic lifechanging event, to be able to hug and say thank you to Kevin and Aaron for saving my daughter’s life was a beautiful moment in time that I will never forget.
“Watching Emilie’s life drastically change for the last eight months recovering from a brain bleed, having her independence taken away and then seeing her face light up when she visited LifeFlight and hop in the helicopter is a beautiful end to a crazy time.
“We are so lucky to have the service of LifeFlight here in Bundaberg.”
The community will come together to show their support for LifeFlight at the second annual Soiree in the Hangar, proudly presented by RealWay Property Consultants.
Taking place at the LifeFlight Bundaberg Base on 14 June, last year’s event raised nearly $80,000 towards the LifeFlight Critical Care Doctor Project.
Funds raised this year will go towards LifeFlight’s free emergency trauma training First Minutes Matter in the Wide Bay-Burnett region.
Tickets are on sale now at lifeflight.org.au/foundation/events.
For more information, contact LifeFlight Community Engagement Lead Aleisha Evans at aleisha.evans@lifeflight.org.au.
Great write up there! I’ve never met Kev, but I see a lot of the activities he’s involved in, especially pulling in XOS barra at Monduran! I reckon he should be considered for any awards floating around in recognition of the work he does.