Dr. John Hinds was a remarkable clinician and inspiration to many through his unorthodox combination of being a fantastically talented clinician and educator, as well as a motorcycle fanatic, with a red ponytail!
He inspired a worldwide following through his talks, both locally and internationally, especially through the Social Media And Critical Care (SMACC) conference, in which he played a starring role. He connected with audiences to deliver a serious message, but did so through humility, humour, and even he odd bad word. He could as easily be found gassing in an operating theatre, or eating his lunch with a spanner at a bike race.
He died 4 July 2015 following a crash at Skerries while providing medical cover for his beloved road races. This was just over a week after this fantastic talk at SMACC Chicago:
Following his death, there was an outpouring of sadness from his friends and people who hadn't had the privilege of meeting him, from around the world. John had campaigned heavily for an air ambulance for Northern Ireland. At his funeral, Dr. Fred Mc Sorely, his good friend, called on everyone to redouble their efforts to make the Northern Ireland Air Ambulance a reality in John's honour, and for it to retain John's call sign "Delta 7".
On 21 March 2016 that became a reality, as John's partner Dr. Janet Acheson and his family were present when Simon Hamilton, the Stormont health minister Simon Hamilton announced that the service would become a reality, and would also carry the call sign "Delta 7".
After Dr. John's death, Dr. Mark Forrest suggested a pin be prodcuced to allow us remember him during our day to day work and be #pinspired. The striking logo, inspired by Johns distinctive bike helmet, was developed by Mark Schofield at http://www.masch.co.uk/ and SkillShop sourced the pins.
People wear the pins worldwide to remember John, which is a source of huge pride to us. We have recently agreed with Janet, John's partner, that the funds raised should be used to support Doctor and Paramedic ancillary training costs for the new NI HEMS, which would have been a cause close to John's Heart. This will be allocated as decided by the clinical oversight group. Please support this endeavor below: