Model Evacuation Complex Example

(Note: all names are fictitious)

Seventy-eight year old Mr. Johnson is in a difficult situation. A lifelong smoker, he has been vacationing in the southwest where the tour bus has taken him from Death Valley (altitude 200' below sea level) to Mammoth Lakes, California (altitude 8000'). The change in altitude has caused him severe shortness of breath. The local hospital treats him for pneumonia and COPD exacerbation. After a week in the hospital, he is now able to be transported to his home hospital in Minnesota, but he will need oxygen at all times during the trip as well as scheduled IV antibiotics .

After reviewing Mr. Johnson's medical condition and the travel arrangements previously made by the assistance company, Air Medical Escorts dispatches Patty, a nurse with 10 years of critical care experience. She will take Mr. Johnson by ground ambulance to Reno, then via scheduled commercial flight to Minneapolis/St. Paul via Chicago, and then by ambulance to his local hospital.

AME confirms the oxygen is ready on the ground in Chicago , as well as on each leg of the flight. We also confirm the ground ambulances will be there when needed.

After arriving in Mammoth Lakes, Patty spends the evening at the hospital getting to know Mr. Johnson and going over his medical records. She introduces herself to the nursing staff and spends time with the attending nurse to learn more of his condition. She finds he will need nebulized medicine and therefore makes sure her med neb mask can be easily accessed once they board the plane. She sets up the IV pump and tubing so it is ready when his IV meds are scheduled.

On travel day, she gets an update on his condition and gathers his antibiotics and the nebulized medications-she has enough to last until he reaches Minneapolis, plus one day extra in the event of a flight delay. She also picks up the medical reports and X-rays. She reassesses Mr. Johnson and feels he is stable for the evacuation.

The ambulance takes them to the airport in Reno, where he is met with a wheelchair and an accompanying oxygen bottle. Well enough to sit, he is wheeled by Patty through the screening process and into the business lounge to await boarding. She reviews the flight logistics with him, and demonstrates DVT-prevention exercises he needs to do in-flight. She helps him use the restroom prior to the flight.

Once on board, he is transferred to the oxygen already on board the aircraft . Patty helps him use the nebulized medications and gives him the IV antibiotics and his normal medications as scheduled. She frequently monitors his oxygen saturation and increases the oxygen flow after he returns from the lavatory, since his O2 sats have become lower than acceptable. Once his saturations have returned to baseline, she returns the oxygen flow rate to baseline. She also encourages him to drink lots of fluids, knowing that the cabin air is very dry, and the oxygen is drying as well.

She goes through the same routine in Chicago during their layover, making sure Mr. Johnson is comfortable, safe and secure. Once in Minneapolis, the ambulance takes them to the receiving hospital where the doctor has already set up a bed for him. She gives a complete report to the receiving nurses, makes one last assessment, and says goodbye to Mr. Johnson. She leaves with him a small Sky Pilot bear wearing an Air Medical Escort pin, to remind him of his trip with us, and to show he was attended by a professional who cared for him. He is grateful to be home where his family can visit him.

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