Prince William has spoken about the highs and lows of his work as an air ambulance pilot.
The Duke of Cambridge left his position with the East Anglian Air Ambulance this week, in order to focus more on his royal duties and during his two years on the job, William has seen tragedy and joy.
In a letter he wrote for edp24.co.uk, William said: "One of the first call outs I made was to a young man who had taken his own life; it was an incredibly tough day and had a profound effect on all of us, not least in my determination now to draw attention to this issue.
"Another rescue that sticks in my mind was to a young man who was involved in a road accident. His uncle in the car with him sadly didn’t survive, and I was sure that from what we were faced with he wouldn’t either – but thanks to the skills of our medical team he is alive today.
"We were first on scene and in such circumstances, we all had to pitch in to fight to save the young man’s life. It is days like this, when you know you have made a difference, that give you the determination to keep going."
William, 35 – who is a vocal supporter of mental health charities along with his wife Duchess Catherine and brother Prince Harry – also praised the air ambulance service for looking after its staff following stressful situations.
He said: "I have seen at first-hand how our doctors, paramedics, police, fire and emergency services teams work together with such skill and professionalism in stressful situations.
"I have also been very fortunate to work with an organisation which recognises the stress its staff deals with and puts their welfare as such a high priority.
"You need to be physically and mentally fit to do this job properly and so we are encouraged to talk through the things we have seen, to share the trauma within the team.
"I now know though that there are things that cannot be unseen and experiences that our first responders deal with on a daily basis that they will carry with them for life."
Prince William reveals highs and lows of air ambulance role
