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One-way neonatal transports: a new approach to increase effective utilization of air medical resources
1Ohio State University School of Medicine, Columbus, USA.
Insights
Implementing a formal neonatal transport policy improved air medical resource use by reducing unnecessary two-way transports and mission times for high-risk neonates. This policy shows potential for broader application in neonatal air medical services.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal care
- Emergency medical services
- Transport medicine
Background:
- High-risk neonates require extensive preparation for transport.
- Current practices may not optimize air medical resource utilization.
- The need for standardized neonatal transport protocols is evident.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of a formal neonatal transport policy on air medical resource efficiency.
- To assess the potential applicability of such a policy to other transport programs.
Main Methods:
- Descriptive review of neonatal flight data before and after policy implementation.
- Telephone survey of 20 regional rotor-wing transport programs.
- Comparative analysis of transport volume, mission times, and transport types.
Main Results:
- Neonatal transports decreased post-policy (85/13 months vs. 60/17 months).
- Two-way neonatal transports significantly reduced (4.6/month vs. 1.3/month).
- Average mission time for neonatal transports decreased; only one surveyed program had a formal policy.
Conclusions:
- The neonatal team transport policy enhanced effective air medical resource utilization.
- The policy's success suggests it could be widely adopted by other air medical programs.
- Standardized policies are crucial for optimizing neonatal air transport services.
Introduction:
High-risk neonates often require significant stabilization and preparation time for transport. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the institution of a formal neonatal transport policy would increase the effective utilization of air medical resources and to determine whether such a policy would be useful to other air medical transport programs.
Methods:
A descriptive review of flight data from time periods before and after the institution of the policy, combined with a telephone survey of 20 other rotor-wing transport programs.
Results:
After implementation of the policy, the total number of neonatal transports decreased (85 in 13 months vs 60 in 17 months) as did the number of two-way transports per month (4.6 vs 1.3). In addition, average mission time for all neonatal transports decreased. Fifteen of 20 transport programs in this Association of Air Medical Resources region perform neonatal transports. Only one of the 15 has a formal policy to determine the use of one-way versus two-way neonatal transports.
Conclusion:
The neonatal team transport policy has increased the effective utilization of air medical resources in this program. This policy could have wider application for other programs as well.