At large airports, the principal problem is coordination of resources. These resources consist of airport medical resources and outside medical resources. At small airports, the problem is often more complex because the surrounding community's small medical and non-medical resources often may be inadequate. The danger of crash is about the same, however, as that of a large airport, if this small airport serves aircraft of categories 4 or 5. The following recommendations are relevant to small airports:1. The guidelines contained in “Airport Emergency Planning,” recently published by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) should be followed.2. An inventory of all the private and public resources available in the surrounding communities should be completed and their development and expansion actively supported.3. A flexible medical policy should be adopted stressing first aid as a first priority. Air evacuation of victims should be arranged by helicopter or medevac aircraft to other better equipped communities. Rescue teams and medical equipment, including mobile shelters, should be brought by air from other communities.4. An International Medical Task Force should be considered which could be capable of being rapidly mobilized. This could be useful not only for airport disaster, but also in case of natural disasters or any other mass accident.
Recommendations for the medical task force against COVID-19: Zhongshan experience in Wuhan
