Are Air Ambulances Taking Patients for a Ride?

One of my former posts was Reduce Inappropriate Helicopter Utilization in EMS. In that post we learned the appropriate reasons to use an air medical helicopter in the out-of-hospital setting

In the article from JEMS the Journal of Emergency Medical Services we learned what the appropriate uses for medical helicopters were....
Patient has a significant potential to require high-level life support available from an air medical helicopter, which isn't available by ground transport.

Patient has a significant potential to require a time-critical intervention and an air medical helicopter will deliver the patient to an appropriate facility faster than ground transport.

Patient is located in a geographically isolated area, which would make ground transport impossible or greatly delayed; or local EMS resources are exceeded."

But using HEMS simply because a local ground service is inadequately staffed or funded, or doesn't want to leave their territory "uncovered," isn't an acceptable solution. 

For example, let's say an EMS agency has a patient who's sick and needs to go to a hospital an hour away. The patient doesn't require the speed or care HEMS provides, but because the patient is too sick to stay in the community, they're forced to go by HEMS just to keep the local GEMS unit available.

Find more information on how Air Ambulances are Taking Patients for a Ride For-profit air-ambulance companies too often pick up people who don’t need air transport—and leave families with huge bills that insurance won’t pay

Many times the flight time to Dolan Springs for a medical helicopter is 30 minutes. They then need to land, get a patient update, load the patient, and then have a 30 minute flight time to Vegas...

The drive time from Dolan Springs to KRMC ER in Kingman is only 38 minutes....

If you have serious trauma and need a trauma center there is nothing better for fast transports in some cases that a medical helicopter, but if you don't it could cost you and your family $25,ooo

Communication Breakdown On 9/11 When Emergency Communications Break Down

Communication Breakdown On 9/11

We are never prepared for communications to fail, and when they do people die. 

A new report by the federal commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks found that rescuers were forced to make rapid-fire, life-and-death decisions based on poor communications, contributing to the World Trade Center death toll.

Communication Breakdown On 9/11

It's 4 AM the Earth Shakes You Hit the Light Switch and Nothing....

It's 4 AM you're almost thrown from bed and realize we just had a major earthquake. Your feet hit the floor you reach for the light switch, but nothing happens. 

You start to wake up and think it's funny your pager hasn't gone off alerting you to the problem. You try your cell phone but no bars, there's no radio traffic on your fire district frequency, or any of the other frequency you try.

It's going to be days or weeks before communications are restored. Your immediate need is to triage the few patients who can make it to the fire station and try to establish communications with other areas or agencies.

You dig out a couple backup satellite phones, but they've been there for years and the batteries are dead. You need to get help from outside agencies, but to do that you need to be able to communicate.

Mohave County Emergency Management has one mobile communications unit but with wide spread damage and I-40, US-93 US-95 and most other roads damaged they're not coming to Dolan Springs or Meadview.

At this point your ability to gather injury and damage assessments are limited, outside agencies can't assist us without knowing what we need. 


We live in a rural area with limited communications resources on the best day. We need to improve our local emergency communications because when communications fail, we have nothing?

Disasters in remote places have historically involved amateur radio operators. These “hams” have stepped in to provide assistance when other forms of communication fail. Disasters still happen regularly, and ham radio operators continue to serve the public with their skills and radio equipment.

Without the ability to communicate effectively during a major disaster I fear Dolan Springs and Meadview will suffer far more casualties.

You have no electricity, no water, landline and cell phones are down and roads are damaged and impassable.. 
How are you going to call for help?
Who are you going to call for help?