ABSTRACT
1) The development of Air Emergency Service sponsored by a private community hospital is described. 2) Helicopter evacuation of the seriously injured and critically ill in civilian life proved feasible if the community is willing to pay for the services rendered. 3) Two thousand six hundred fifty patients have been transported by helicopter (85%) or fixed-wing plane in 27 months. A minimum of 2,000 flights seems a certainty for 1975. 4) The types of patient, causes of death, and other medical aspects are discussed. 5) The helicopter must be considered as only one component in the E.M.S. System. It will be successful only with development of a complete program which includes: communications; cooperation of law enforcement agencies, fire districts, and rescue squads; integration with ground transportation; the inclusion of highly trained allied medical personnel, physicians, emergency departments and hospitals; and community education and acceptance.
Subject(s)
Aerospace Medicine , Emergency Medical Services , Transportation of Patients , Colorado , Costs and Cost Analysis , Humans , Intubation, Intratracheal , ResuscitationSubject(s)
Positive-Pressure Respiration , Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn/therapy , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Child , Female , Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Male , Middle Aged , Pancreatitis/complications , Pneumonia, Aspiration/complications , Pneumonia, Viral/complications , Pulmonary Alveoli , Pulmonary Edema/therapy , Respiration , Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn/diagnosis , Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn/etiology , Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn/mortality , Respiratory Function Tests , Thoracic Injuries/complicationsSubject(s)
Hypoxia/complications , Polycythemia/complications , Posture , Adult , Aged , Altitude , Arteries , Blood Gas Analysis , Blood Pressure , Body Weight , Bone Marrow Cells , Carbon Dioxide/blood , Colorado , Culture Techniques , Erythropoietin/analysis , Female , Hematocrit , Humans , Hydrogen-Ion Concentration , Hypertension/complications , Male , Middle Aged , Obesity/complications , Oxygen/blood , Oxygen Inhalation Therapy , Partial Pressure , Polycythemia/blood , Respiratory Function TestsSubject(s)
Colistin/adverse effects , Neuromuscular Junction/drug effects , Paralysis/chemically induced , Polymyxins/adverse effects , Respiratory Insufficiency/chemically induced , Adult , Aged , Female , Humans , Infant , Male , Middle Aged , Positive-Pressure Respiration , Respiratory Insufficiency/therapy , Respiratory Paralysis , SpirometryABSTRACT
An organized approach for the management of acute respiratory failure in an intensive general care unit utilizes a team of consultants including a general physician, a surgeon, respiratory care nurses, physical therapists and a blood gas technician. Because this team provides consultation and technical assistance in respiratory care and provides the equipment as well as the monitoring of care, this approach is suitable for any hospital interested in the management of acute respiratory emergencies.
