North Memorial medical flight transport held a training session last week at Johnson Memorial Health Services (JMHS). The hospital nursing staff and some of the ambulance crew were on hand to see up close how the medical helicopter functions during a patient transport. The training session provided them with the opportunity to talk to the air ambulance crew about any new procedures, medicine and protocols.
Lori Andreas, JMHS Hospital Director of Nurses said “It’s always good to refresh your knowledge. Because emergency medicine is constantly changing it is important to continually enhance our staffs’ skills. It is critically important that we are on the same page with the air ambulance crew.”
With bases in Bemidji, Brainerd, Princeton, Redwood Falls and LakevilleAir Care, North Memorial’s Air Care service can respond 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to all of Minnesota and parts of Western Wisconsin, northern Iowa and the eastern Dakotas.
North Memorials flight nurses and paramedics have years of critical care experience from a variety of high volume intensive care, emergency department and ambulance services. The medical flight crews have additional training to provide the highest level of care for adult and pediatric patients. The crews responds to over 4,500 requests for service each year.
Air Care owns and operates a fleet of seven Agusta 109 helicopters, which is the fastest civilian helicopter on the market. The twin engine aircraft can fly at speeds of up to 180 mph. Depending on weather conditions and terrain, crews can often respond directly to the scene of an emergency. Even though they are affiliated with North Memorial’s Level I Trauma Center in Minneapolis, they will transport patients to and from any appropriate facility.
During the training session three nurses from JMHS were able to have a quick flight to simulate what happens during an actual emergency. It provided them with an opportunity to learn how to safely load a patient into the helicopter and to see how the flight crew operates in such tight quarters.
