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After a traumatic injury there is a "golden hour" in which to treat the patient which makes the difference between life and death.
The US Forest Service uses smoke jumpers to attack remore inaccessible fires while they are small and containable.
We have seen trained parachutists land in windy
conditions at near zero velocity in an area about 5 metres square.
So in remote areas and crowded urban areas where traffic is a problem, aircraft should patrol carrying paramedic skydivers. When an emergency arises the aircraft heads directly to the spot at high speed. The paramedics have helmets with night vision, or the plane drops parachute flares to illuminate the landing zone.
The paramedics run to the victims and administer immediate life saving treatment. The ground based units perform the follow up.
SkyLife
http://www.skylifeca.com/
"...provides rapid air transportation for the critically injured trauma and medical patient." [phoenix, Jun 13 2002, last modified Oct 21 2004]
Acadian
http://www.acadian....ervices/default.stm
Ambulance Helicopter Services [phoenix, Jun 13 2002, last modified Oct 21 2004]
Et al
http://www.google.c...&btnG=Google+Search
Google search for +helicopter +ambulance [phoenix]
Catapult to Work...
http://www.halfbake...atapult_20to_20Work
...or emergency redirection to the casualty department. [phoenix, Jun 13 2002, last modified Oct 21 2004]
Catapult to Work...
http://www.halfbake...atapult_20to_20Work
...or emergency redirection to the casualty department. [st3f, Jun 14 2002, last modified Oct 05 2004]
fantastic service.
http://www.freefoto...owse.jsp?id=28-22-0
[po, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004]
USAF Para Rescue
http://www.airforce...de=1T231&subcatId=6
Skydiving Paramedics with GUNS! [Letsbuildafort, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004]
[link]
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Why not have the paramedics flying around in helicopters? |
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Helicopters are nasty, dangerous things of which we have a profound and continuing dislike. Are you seriously advocating travel in an air vehcle which shows a direct linear desecndancy from the common hand-wound egg whisk ? No, fixed wing is fine for us. We would not ask anyone to take a risk we would not take ourselves. Helicopters ? You can keep 'em. |
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"Therefore, send not to know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee ....." |
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Well, yeah, personal biases aside, helicopters do have inherent risks. So does skydiving. I think asking a paramedic to risk trying to safely parachute into a space that's unsafe for a helicopter (electrical wires kill parachutists, too) is not a very good way to thank them for their service. |
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Schoolmate of mine does this |
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How do they get the injured to hospital? |
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Angel: The patient is taken to hospital by conventional ground vehicles, or moved to an area where a chopper can get in safely. The paramedic's role is to get in there FAST and stabilise the patient with defibrilation, IV, pressure bandage, oxygen or whatever until the main team can get there. |
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// The paramedic's role is to get in there FAST and stabilise the patient with defibrilation, IV, pressure bandage, oxygen or whatever // |
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So they're going to parachute in with oxygen cylinders and masks, defibrilation machine, medical supplies? That's a lot of stuff to carry. How many people are going to get killed just from being hit on the head by a gas cylinder? |
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How about helicopter bungy paramedic? They could then simply grab the ankles of the injured party... |
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In Soho, they're piloting a scheme using Paramedics on pushbikes to get to injuries faster through the maze of narrow streets. If something can be carried by a cyclist, surely it can be carried by a parachutist. |
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// I have seen trained parachutists land in windy conditions at near zero velocity in an area about 5 metres square // |
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...and I've seen trained parachutists smash into a building at a rather greater than zero velocity in pretty light winds. Kind of adding to the casualties, no? |
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I couln't help but read this as parabolic skydivers -- a body of people that would be in need of this service. |
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Regarding getting the injured back to hospital, I'd like to suggest an emergency redirection of DrBob's 'Catapult to Work' network. (see link) |
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I don't think that this is a good idea. I am in the profession myself. I agree that we are trying to get there fast in an emergency situation, but most big centers now have "paramedic response units (PRU)" that usually a minivan or SUV staffed by an advanced medic and are situated throughout the city. When i call comes in both the PRU and an ambulance get dispatched. They get there and perform what needs to be done, then the ambulance gets there and picks them up and takes the patient to the hospital. Any time that could be saved by people rappeling or parachuting is irrelevant. If i person isn't going to make it, a couple minutes (which is usually not that long anyway, usually only a minute difference) doesn' matter. If they are that serious they will not live long even if you do get the them to the hospital. The dangers of rappelling or parachuting is too much of a risk for a profession that is already risking alot on the job. The main problem out there is that when people see an ambulance coming with lights and siren they freak out and forget what to do. They slow down, pull to the left or just stop right where they are, and even not see or hear us at all. This delay is really hard for the paramedics to understand, and hard for the people who we are going to help to understand. They need to educate people that if they see an ambulance slow down and pull to the right. Even if the ambulance is coming toward you, still pull over. It's nice to have that extra room if the person in front of the ambulance doesn't see you, then you can go around. I hope this opens some people's eye to the problems of being a paramedic. |
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Thanks for that. Comments noted. |
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Sadly in the UK they don't have such a lavish distribution of rapid-response paramedic vehicles, and the traffic is appaling in some urban loactions. However, in our experience we are glad to say that most drivers do display excellent road discipline when faced with an emergency services vehicle closing rapidly from behind. |
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The military actually already has this and use the service occasionally to rescue civilians. This is the job of Air force Pararescue who routinely parachute into areas to treat the critically wounded. Their main military roll is to rescue downed pilots and to provide trauma support for Special Forces, SEALs, etc… In the civilian sector the perform all at sea medical rescues for the United States east coast farther than 200mi from the coast, under 200mi is the Coast Guard’s domain. Normally they use helicopters with mid-air refueling capabilities to get on scene but in some circumstances they will fly on fixed wing aircraft at high speed to reach the victim, parachute on scene (carrying usually over 100 pounds of medical gear) and administer life saving treatment to stabilize the patient until a slower traveling helicopter can reach them. www.specialtactics.com for more info on Pararescue. |
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Would it not be more cost effective if the paramedics were deployed from a hot-air balloon affair, or perhaps a hullaballoon? |
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In order to keep the costs down, the medic's parachute could carry the logo of a sponsoring drugs company. |
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Paramedics using parachutes and flying on helicopters have existed since 1942. See the following links: |
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http://www.alaska.net/~jcassidy/PJ.html |
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http://www.specialtactics.com/ |
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Fast roping, rappelling, low and slowing from a helicopter and getting back up to a hovering helicopter using hoist is routine. Parachuting from as low as 200 feet above the ground to altitudes above 25,000 feet MSL/AGL during the day or at night is also old news. Job is not for the incompetent, the lazy, and those lacking athletic fitness. This group is what put the para in paramedic. |
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// The paramedic's role is to get in there FAST and stabilise the patient with defibrilation, IV, pressure bandage, oxygen or whatever until the main team can get there. // |
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So maybe we could have paramedics placed at convenient coordinates on Earth's orbit. When needed they would be dropped to the atmosphere on fully equipped capsules. |
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I think I want to do this. As a job, I mean, this would be incredibly cool and my parents couldn't rebuke me...but it's not exactly a job you can take classes at night school for and then take up temporarily or in your off hours. |
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The U.S. Airforce has baked this quite extensively with [link] |
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So, these people would be paradox? |
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Yes, and they could stop on a paradigm. |
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I'm just imagining that I'm dying, and I'm seeing darkness in a tonne of light, and the darkness says: |
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'Give me all your money and credit card pin number'. |
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'I'm sorry, there was nothing I could do, she died on impact' |
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The paramedic will end off richer, I guess... |
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What parameters would be best for a skydiver to have? |
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I'd want to have an altimeter |
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Parachutes are nice, too. |
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I really fell for that one. |
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What if the victim is also a skydiver either in free fall or chute deployed? Can't really get a 'copter to him, now can you? |
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johca2: This group is what put the para in paramedic. |
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No, working beside practitioners of medicine is what put the para in paramedicine. (Para=beside) |
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I thought that this idea resurfaced because of that skydive instructor who had a cardiac arrest while falling. A skydiving paramedic could catch up and start CPR earlier. |
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Para- also means against. Parachute = against fall. |
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How about doing this as a HALO jump from a high-altitude balloon platform? It can be high enough to avoid being blown around by wind and other weathers. Then several paramedics can stay up there waiting to be needed, and they can steer somewhat on the way down. Might be faster than a fixed-wing aircraft, in some situations. |
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