Helicopter Transports

[sbp7993]

When should a patient be transported via helicopter? What are the criteria for this type of transport?

 

[busmonkey]

When should a patient be transported via helicopter? What are the criteria for this type of transport?

It really depends on your location/area protocol. For us, we have the STARS Auto launch procedure which is based on a combination of things... 1 being the MPDS call type and the recommendations through the CAD and 2 is the travel time by ground ambulance to 1 of the 4 major trauma centers in the Lower Mainland. For some reason, 22mins seems to be the magic number. I remember seeing information from a local SAR team outlining the criteria...I'll have to have a look around to see what I can find.

 

[lightsandsirens5]

I'll get you Northwest MedStar's launch card as soon as I can scan it in.

 

[usafmedic45]

If you are closer than an hour to a hospital, there is no real good reason to fly the patient. No unbiased study has shown significant benefit in the United States outside of extremely rural settings for scene response flights. The only thing guaranteed is profit for the helicopter companies and a steady supply of new names to go here: http://www.airmedicalmemorial.com/

 

[Shishkabob]

Oh oh oh


"When the patients condition can greatly benefit from the faster air transport time than going by ground transport"



I win.

 

[Akulahawk]

That one hour time covers the amount of time the helo takes to launch, fly to the scene, land, have the flight crew do their own evaluation, load the patient, and fly to the appropriate hospital. This assumes that you already have access to the patient, and are ready to go. Some places are auto-dispatched because of their remote location, and it's possible for the flight crew to arrive on scene first, do all the above, and leave before other resources arrive... Some of the places I'm familiar with have drive times of 60 minutes or more to the nearest hospital, and 2-3 hours to the nearest trauma center. Those places have flight times of about 10 minutes and 25 minutes respectively, because the helo can go OVER the terrain rather than having to follow the road...

 

[MonkeySquasher]

(See my response in other thread.)

 

[LucidResq]

Some of the places I'm familiar with have drive times of 60 minutes or more to the nearest hospital, and 2-3 hours to the nearest trauma center. Those places have flight times of about 10 minutes and 25 minutes respectively, because the helo can go OVER the terrain rather than having to follow the road...

This is what I like to see helicopters used for...

A classic example call I was on was an off-road dirt bike vs. tree out in the sticks. The responding agency had to call our SAR team just to access the patient because they needed ATVs to reach him. Flights was also en route as soon as we were called. The guy had a gnarly tib/fib and due to MOI and no helmet, high suspicion of other injury of course. So the medics got on scene and started working with him and got an LZ set up. Since flights was already around he was flown out pretty much as soon as they had an LZ. Whole thing was probably less than two hours from the time the call went out to the time he was in a helicopter being cared for by two RNs. Another 15-20 before he was in the hospital being seen by a doc, probably.

Now since this place was 2.5 miles off the road and inaccessible to an ambulance, if we didn't call in flights, we would have a big ol' team hauling in gear and a litter. Then we're talking a long carry-out... we can ATV out to him but we're carrying him out on a stokes. I would guess that the process of getting to him and getting him to the road would be around 3-4 hours at least. Then, once he gets to the road, it would have been an hour or more on a bumpy mountain dirt road (so fun when you have a broken leg), and then another hour or two on paved roads to a hospital. If he had some bleeding in his gut... he would have been screwed without flights.

 

[traumaangel26]

Oh oh oh


"When the patients condition can greatly benefit from the faster air transport time than going by ground transport"



I win.

I agree.

 

[Veneficus]

If you are closer than an hour to a hospital, there is no real good reason to fly the patient. No unbiased study has shown significant benefit in the United States outside of extremely rural settings for scene response flights. The only thing guaranteed is profit for the helicopter companies and a steady supply of new names to go here: http://www.airmedicalmemorial.com/

This should be in the front page of the EMS texts.

 

[Outbac1]

Here is a link to our Lifeflight page with our activation requirements.
http://www.gov.ns.ca/health/ehs/comm/lifeFlight.asp

 

[sbp7993]

thanks for the replies everyone