Life Flight Research Articles

Metro life flight takes off

Metro life flight takes off

Life flight marks its 10th anniversary: Hermann Hospital, Houston life flight

Life flight marks its 10th anniversary: Hermann Hospital, Houston life flight

Preparing for scenes: A team approach to scene control

Helicopter transport has given rescue units a new, sophisticated support system unmatched by any other development in the past 10 years. Life Flight is the first helicopter service of its kind in this area (Nebraska), having been in operation since June 1979. Currently, flights directly to the scene of an accident at the request of a rescue unit account for approximately 15 percent of our transports. Our Life Flight staff has the luxury of enjoying a close, professional relationship with rescue departments within our service area. More times than not our scene transports are well organized and beneficial to the patients involved. We have found that organized, efficient air transport from the scene does require some prior knowledge of what the emergency medical system has to offer and how it works. Rescue squad members should be familiar with your service and your in order to be of optimum assistance to you, and you should be familiar with their routine in order to assist them.

Technical Considerations for Transporting Patients, by Air Ambulance, with Intra-Aortic Balloon Pumps

An increasing demand for the conveyance of patients with acute cardiac decompensation to tertiary cardiovascular centers in our service area prompted investigation of a method for utilizing the intra-aortic balloon pump on helicopters and fixed wing aircraft of the Metro Life Flight system. Mounting a DatascopeR System 84 transport balloon console onto an aluminum helicopter litter allowed convenient loading and cabin configuration. Carbon dioxide CO2 was the driving gas, and no recognizable altitude effects occurred. Reliance on on-board electrical power minimized CO2 usage and maintained adequate reserves for complementary ground transportation. Compressor start-up can create a power drain which trips inverter circuit breakers. This can be avoided by connecting the tubing from the compressor to the console after it is running. Lengthening of the pressure tubing to the slave chamber facilitated patient movement. Special attention to CO2 tank position and ground support preparation (personnel and equipment) have assured safe, expeditious transportation for eight patients with cardiogenic shock (seven) or refractory angina pectoris (one).

Proposal for standards

The following is a proposal submitted by NEMSPA member Bill Roy from St. Vincent Life Flight in Toledo, Ohio, Mr. Roy has over seven years of EMS experience, and prior to that flew helicopters offshore in the North Sea. Bexause of the impressive credentials and experience of Mr. Roy, his proposal should carry considerable weight when finalizing the NEMSPA pilot and aircraft standards. We are publishing Mr. Roy's proposal for two reasons: because of the narrative, which helps explain how he arrived at his conclusions, and to stimulate interest and hopefully some feedback on these recommendations. we would like to thank Mr. Roy for the time and effort put forth on this proposal, and solicit comments either pro or con. — NEMSPA.

LDS hospital life flight

LDS hospital life flight

Grant Hospital Life Flight

Grant Hospital Life Flight

Valley hospital flight for life

Valley hospital flight for life

Mechanical properties of insect fibrillar muscle at large amplitudes of oscillation

Glycerol-extracted fibres from Lethocerus flight muscle were subjected to large-amplitude sinusoidal oscillation in a solution containing Mg-ATP and Ca 2+ at room temperature, under conditions designed to eliminate the effects of diffusion of nucleotides into and out of the fibre. They produced work up to 4 to 8 % peak-to-peak oscillation amplitude at 1.5 to 2.5 Hz and up to lower amplitudes at higher frequencies; freshly extracted fibres produced work at higher amplitudes than aged fibres. The mean tension in the muscle was shown to be critical for work production. Provided this parameter was maintained constant, the mean fibre length, Ca 2+ concentration and ADP concentration could be varied considerably without loss of oscillatory work; these factors are therefore not in themselves critical for oscillation. The tension/length relationship of relaxed fibres is non-linear at high amplitudes of oscillation. Oscillatory tension/length loops are not elliptical at high amplitude and change shape when mean tension and frequency are changed. Linear control theory cannot be used to analyse performance at high amplitudes. At the upper limit of mechanical performance the oscillation amplitude and work-per-cycle performed by the freshly extracted fibres were similar to those of live flight muscle, and the active tension generated was similar to that from other maximally activated striated muscles. Calculation suggests that most or all of the myosin in the muscle was activated in each cycle of oscillation. The limits of performance are therefore probably present in life and are characteristics of the entire contractile material; their possible significance is discussed.