TAMPA, Fla. — A Bay Area woman has been saving lives for three decades — transporting patients in Tampa General's Aeromed chopper to wherever they need to go. 

Last month, Aeromed marked its 30th anniversary.  Just a few weeks after it started, a young nurse fought to join the team. 

Today, registered flight nurse Heather Collins is the longest serving team member. 

"I've been here for thirty years and our job includes transporting patients from the scene and transporting patients from hospital to hospital," Collins said. 

Aeromed serves all of the Tampa Bay area, but sometimes the flights travel further. 

"Generally it's within a 50 miles radius, but we do transports as far away as Miami and Jacksonville," Collins said. 

You may think that when the alarm goes off, the adrenaline kicks in, but that's not the case. 

"Actually no. It's quite the opposite. It's calming. You have to be focused on what you're doing at the moment. Everything else has to go away," she said. 

Collins said she truly loves her job, even from day one, and has no plans on stopping. 

"I hope that we're able to offer some hope to those patients and families who are probably having the worst day or week of their lives," she said.