By Ron Fonger
mlive.com
GENESEE COUNTY, Mich. — Genesee County paramedics could start carrying blood in their vehicles for emergency transfusions before patients reach the hospital, a change that officials say has life-saving potential.
The county Board of Commissioners could finalize a $50,000 agreement between the county Sheriff’s Office and the American Red Cross, which would supply blood for the pilot program, when it meets next week.
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Commissioners gave the proposal initial approval during a committee meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 3.
“The sooner the better,” Sheriff Chris Swanson said of the pilot program that’s been developed with support from the Red Cross and Hurley Medical Center doctors. “It increases (patients’) survivability.”
“I feel like this is one of those breakthroughs,” Swanson said, comparing the addition of blood to paramedic vehicles to the addition of chest compression devices used during cardiac arrest emergencies. “I’m cautiously optimistic this is going to (save lives).”
County paramedics currently administer saline intravenously, but not blood.
The sheriff told commissioners in a written review of the project that severe bleeding is the primary cause of preventable fatalities in trauma patients, including those involved in motor vehicle crashes.
“But with the prompt delivery of pre-hospital blood or blood products, it’s estimated that 37% of trauma patients with severe bleeding could be saved,” Swanson wrote. “For every minute of delay in administering blood, the risk of death increases by 11%.”
The sheriff said that preparing for the project and the protocols tied to it — developed through the county Medical Control Authority — took time to complete, but said the new program will still make the county among the first in Michigan to provide blood administration in the field.
Paramedics will carry Type O blood, which can be used for most patients, according to Swanson.
The cost of the blood would be $600 per patient, according to the Sheriff’s Office, but grants or other funding options are possible once the pilot program has been completed.
“We need innovation, and this sounds like it might save some lives,” said Commissioner Dale Weighill, D- Flint Twp.
The sheriff’s Paramedic Division is funded through a countywide millage. Officers in the division are certified police officers and licensed paramedics.
County paramedics don’t transport patients to hospitals in their vehicles, but can ride in private ambulances and care for patients in route to emergency rooms.
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