scholarly journals P095: Who, what, where: a critical assessment of helicopter emergency medical services transport and transfer times on patient outcomes at two level 1 trauma centres

CJEM ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (S1) ◽  
pp. S110-S110
Author(s):  
B. Nolan ◽  
A. Ackery ◽  
H. Tien ◽  
B. Sawadsky ◽  
S. Rizoli ◽  
...  

Introduction: Helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) have become an engrained component of trauma systems to expedite transportation to a trauma centre. Ornge is a provincially run, paramedic-staffed HEMS that is responsible for all air ambulance service within Ontario, Canada. They provide transportation for trauma patients through one of three ways: scene call, modified scene call or interfacility transfer. In this study we report the characteristics of patients transported by each of these methods to two level 1 trauma centres and assess for any impact on morbidity or mortality. Methods: A local trauma registry was used to identify all patients transported to our two trauma centres by HEMS over a 36-month period. Data surrounding patient demographic, arrival characteristics, transport times and in-hospital course were abstracted from the registry. Statistical analysis will be used to compare methods of transport and characterize any association between mode of transport and mortality. Results: From January 1st, 2012 to December 31st, 2014 HEMS transferred a total of 911 patients to our trauma centers with an overall mortality rate of 11%. Of these patients 139 were scene calls with a mortality rate of 8%, 333 were modified scene calls with a mortality rate of 14% and 439 were interfacility transfers with a mortality rate of 10%. Conclusion: Identifying any association between the type of HEMS transport and morbidity and mortality, we may be able to predict those that need more urgent transfer to a trauma centre and find ways to decrease our overall pre-trauma center time.

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 1219
Author(s):  
Mrutyunjay I. Uppin ◽  
Kapildev K. Hannurkar ◽  
Archana M. Uppin

Background: Patient satisfaction is an important key factor for determining the quality health care and services offered by the emergency departments in the hospital. The objectives of the study were to assess the satisfaction of the trauma patients attending the trauma center with the services provided by the KLES Dr. Prabhakar Kore Hospital and Research Centre, Belagavi, Karnataka.Methods: Fifty trauma patients admitted and treated in trauma center and emergency medical services ward (TCEMS) at KLES Dr. Prabhakar Kore Hospital and Research Centre, Belagavi, over a period of 3 months (from November 2014 till January 2015) were interviewed. After obtaining an informed consent, the required data was collected using a pre-designed and pre-tested questionnaire.Results: Out of the 50 patients interviewed, 86% were males and 14% were females. Out of them 74% were road traffic accident victims. 67.5% of these victims were between the age group of 21 and 50 yrs. The overall satisfaction was good with all the services provided at the center. 80% were satisfied with the care provided by the doctors, 80% with communication by doctors, more than 75% with accessory services, more than 65% with the wait times at various levels and more than 85% satisfaction with amenities in the ward.Conclusions: In conclusion our study revealed that the availability of consultant in triage area, improvements in communication, quick service at the Casualty Pharmacy, reducing the perceived waiting times at various levels and improvement in the ambience of the unit would further enhance the patient satisfaction with TCEMS.


Author(s):  
M. Gavrilovski ◽  
J. E. Griggs ◽  
E. ter Avest ◽  
R. M. Lyon ◽  

Abstract Background Although the merit of pre-hospital critical care teams such as Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) has been universally recognized for patients with penetrating torso injuries who present with unstable physiology, the potential merit in patients initially presenting with stable physiology is largely undetermined. The ability to predict the required pre-hospital interventions patients may have important implications for HEMS tasking, especially when transport times to definitive care are prolonged. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study of patients who sustained a penetrating torso injury and were attended by the Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex (AAKSS) over a 6-year period. Primary outcome was defined as the percentage of patients with penetrating torso injuries requiring HEMS-specific interventions anytime between HEMS arrival and arrival at hospital. Secondary outcomes were the association of individual patient- and injury characteristics with the requirement for HEMS interventions. Results During the study period 363 patients met inclusion criteria. 90% of patients were male with a median age of 30 years. 99% of penetrating trauma incident occurred more than 10-min drive from a Major Trauma Centre (MTC). Presenting GCS was > 13 in 83% of patients. Significant hemodynamic- or ventilatory compromise was present in more than 25% of the patients. Traumatic cardiac arrest was present in 34 patients (9.4%), profound hypotension with SBP < 80 mmHg in 30 (8.3%) and oxygen saturations < 92% in 30 (8.3%). A total of 121 HEMS-specific interventions were performed. Although HEMS-specific interventions were associated with presenting physiology (TCA OR 1.75 [1.41–2.16], SBP < 80 mmHg (OR 1.40 [1.18–1.67] and SpO2 < 92% (OR 1.39 [1.17–1.65], a minority of the patients presented initially with stable physiology but deteriorated on route to hospital and required HEMS interventions (n = 9, 3.3%). Conclusion HEMS teams provide potentially important contribution to the pre-hospital treatment of patients with penetrating torso injuries in rural and semi-rural areas, especially when they present with unstable physiology. A certain degree of over-triage is inevitable in these patients, as it is hard to predict which patients will deteriorate on route to hospital and will need HEMS interventions. The results of this study showing a potentially predictable geographical dispersion of penetrating trauma could inform multi-agency knife crime prevention strategy.


2017 ◽  
Vol 83 (12) ◽  
pp. 1413-1417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahdi Malekpour ◽  
Jabran M. Younus ◽  
Kathryn Jaap ◽  
Nina Neuhaus ◽  
Kenneth Widom ◽  
...  

Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) is presumably an effective way of patient transport in rural trauma, yet the literature addressing its effectiveness is scarce. In this study, we compared the clinical outcome of rural trauma patients between Ground Emergency Medical Services (GEMS) and HEMS transportation from the beginning of 2006 to the end of 2012. Focus was placed on identifying factors associated with survival to discharge in these patients. Over the seven-year study period, 4492 patients met the inclusion criteria with 2414 patients (54%) being transferred by GEMS and 2078 patients (46%) being transferred by HEMS. In comparison with GEMS, patients transferred by HEMS were younger men who were admitted with a higher mean Injury Severity Score and a lower mean Glasgow Coma Score (all Ps < 0.0001). HEMS patients were more frequently intubated before arrival at the trauma center (32% vs 9%, P < 0.0001) and were more frequently transferred to the operating room from the emergency department (11% vs 5%, P < 0.0001). In multivariate analysis, transfer by HEMS was associated with a significant increase in survival to discharge (odds ratio: 1.57, 95% confidence interval: 1.03–2.40, P = 0.036). Blunt injury, no intubation, and Glasgow Coma Score >8 were also associated with significantly improved odds of survival to discharge (all P < 0.0001). These findings show that although patients transferred by HEMS arrived in less favorable clinical conditions, HEMS transfer was associated with significantly higher odds of survival in rural trauma.


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