Lauren Simpson

TAAS Marketing Manager

It means a lot to me to work for my local air ambulance service.

In 2012, I was involved in a very serious road traffic accident on my way to work. I needed to be cut from the car wreck and was airlifted to hospital by the Midlands Air Ambulance with life and limb threatening injuries.

I remained in hospital for three months while surgeons, nurses and physiotherapists got me back onto my feet. I spent another year with an Ilizarov cage – an external fixation device – on my leg to grow bone that I’d lost in the accident, and my wrists, femurs and knees are now supported internally by titanium rods and nails.

Fortunately, I made a full recovery with just scars and a slight limp to show for what happened but the following couple of years of recovery gave me a valuable insight and understanding into the importance of inclusivity within the workplace and the wider world.

By saving time in transporting me to hospital by air, the air ambulance gave me the best chance of survival and a full recovery, and after this life-changing experience it was important to me to be a leader within my field of expertise for my local air ambulance charity – to aid others in potentially similar situations and to promote a truly inclusive work environment, the theme for this year’s International Women’s Day.

A key message I’d like to convey to anyone starting off in their careers or thinking about a life in Marketing is that you can do anything you set your mind to. I started out as a Marketing Coordinator, then moved to a Marketing Executive, Senior Marketing Executive and now a Marketing Manager for a great charity. Follow your dreams, work hard, and you can do it.