By Julie Washington
cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cleveland Clinic is getting three new medical transport helicopters with advanced safety features that expand their ability to transport patients in bad weather, along with other improvements, the Clinic said.
The new five-bladed Airbus H145s helicopters also are quieter during takeoff, approach and landing; give off fewer carbon dioxide emissions, and have quicker start-ups for faster deployment, the Clinic said.
The first of the new critical transport helicopters will start flying in Cleveland in March. Two additional helicopters will arrive in the next few months, the Clinic said.
“This equipment demonstrates Cleveland Clinic’s focus on delivering advanced emergency transport care to residents of Northeast Ohio,” the health system said.
The Clinic’s previous helicopters will be taken out of service.
The critical care transport team’s helicopters can transport patients from other hospitals’ emergency departments, intensive care units and other critical care areas. Some Clinic helicopters fly directly to and from the trauma scene when local emergency personnel request it, the Clinic said.
The health system’s Critical Care Transport program specializes in adult cardiac, neurologic, trauma, pediatric and neonatal care in Northeast Ohio.
The transport team includes two pilots, and an acute care nurse practitioner with a flight nurse or flight paramedic, which enables advanced and immediate care during transport, the Clinic said.
Team members have advanced and ongoing training in the management of critically ill patients, critical care medicine and helicopter transport, the health system said.
Medical helicopters can land at all Clinic hospitals except Lutheran and Lakewood, the Clinic said. The Critical Care Transport team sends ground mobile intensive care units to transport patients who need access to helicopter transport.
Two helicopters will be in service at a time, one stationed at Burke Lakefront Airport and one at Wadsworth Municipal Airport. A third will serve as backup, the Clinic said.
The Clinic partners with PHI Air Medical Services, which provides pilots and maintenance for the medical helicopters, the health system said. PHI Air Medical bills itself as a leading air ambulance provider in the United States.
While the Clinic’s previous helicopters were white, the new medical helicopters will feature a black color scheme with the Clinic’s signature green and blue accents.
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