Characteristics of Fixed Wing Air Ambulance Transports in Victoria, Australia.
Air Medical Journal · 2017-01-01 · Registry study
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Air medical transport is important for the transfer of patients in the prehospital and interhospital environment. Few studies have described the services provided by fixed wing ambulances or the broader clinical profiles of patients they transport. Such information may be useful for the planning and allocation of resources, assistance with training, and refining clinical protocols. We sought to describe the characteristics of patients transported by fixed wing aircraft at Air Ambulance Victoria (AAV) and the service AAV provides in Victoria, Australia. METHODS: A retrospective data review of patients transported by AAV fixed wing aircraft between January 1, 2011, and June 30, 2015, was performed. Data were sourced from the Ambulance Victoria data warehouse. Retrievals involving physicians were excluded. RESULTS: A total of 16,579 patients were transported during the study period, with a median age of 66 years. Most patients were male (58.7%), and cardiovascular/hematologic conditions (27.2%) were most common. Overall, 51.7% of cases were prebooked routine transfers, 47.4% were interhospital routine transfers, and 0.9% were primary responses. Caseloads were largest in the regions furthest from the capital city. CONCLUSION: The AAV fixed wing service in Victoria enables regional and remote patients to be transported to definitive care without major disruption to ground ambulances.
Abstract © the authors or publisher, via PubMed. Reuse and removal
Tags
Helicopter & air ambulance · Interfacility & critical care transport · Rural & remote
Related articles
- Air ambulance retrievals of patients with suspected appendicitis and acute abdominal pain: The patients' journeys, referral pathways and appendectomy outcomes using linked data in Central Queensland, Australia. (Australas Emerg Care, 2023)
- Optimizing remote and rural prehospital resources using air transport of thrombectomy candidates. (Scand J Trauma Resusc Emerg Med, 2024)
- Requesting air ambulance transport of patients with suspected appendicitis: The decision-making process through the eyes of the rural clinician. (Aust J Rural Health, 2023)
- Using a Quality Framework to Explore Air Ambulance Patients' Journey Outcomes in Central Queensland, Australia. (Prehosp Disaster Med, 2023)
- Respiratory and circulatory insufficiency during emergent long-distance critical care interhospital transports to tertiary care in a sparsely populated region: a retrospective analysis of late mortality risk. (BMJ Open, 2022)
- Air Ambulance and Emergency Retrieval Services in Western Australia: Caseload Analysis Over 5 Years. (Air Med J, 2020)