Search and Rescue Missions Conducted by the French Army Between 2015 and 2019.

Area of Science:

• Emergency Medicine
• Aerospace Medicine
• Public Health

Background:

• The French Air and Space Force operates a extensive network of prehospital helicopter services for search and rescue (SAR) missions.
• The efficiency of these national-level SAR operations has been questioned.
• This study evaluates the impact of SAR missions on patient outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the number of lives saved by SAR missions across seven French bases over a five-year period.
• To assess the proportion of patients in imminent danger upon SAR team arrival.
• To analyze mission triggers, response times, and medical procedures performed.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 175 completed mission reports from seven metropolitan bases between 2015 and 2019.
• Primary endpoint: proportion of patients in imminent danger, assessed via a composite criterion (clinical state or CCMS classification).
• Secondary endpoints included response time, mission triggers, and medical procedures.

Main Results:

• Of 175 missions, 34.9% of patients were in imminent danger.
• Trauma, secondary transport, neurological, and cardiac distress comprised 62% of cases.
• Leading causes for deployment included trauma (18.9%) and secondary transfers (16%).

Conclusions:

• SAR missions are crucial for critically ill or injured patients in remote or inaccessible areas.
• These missions often serve as a last resort, filling capacity deficits where conventional services cannot operate.
• SAR operations contribute to improved patient prognosis in challenging environments.