Is the U.S. ready for a public/private aeromedical evacuation model?

Since August 2008, when deployed to New Orleans to assist with the evacuation of transportation-dependent citizens during Hurricane Gustav, I have been involved in evacuation planning in one capacity or another. At the recent National Evacuation Conference in New Orleans, several IEM colleagues and I delivered presentations on our experiences with the planning and execution of evacuations by air and rail.

Also on the agenda was Annika Wallengren of the Swedish Transport Agency who discussed that country’s successful private/public aeromedical evacuation model – the Swedish National Air Medevac System.

The Swedish Transport Agency, in partnership with Scandinavian Airlines and the county council of Västerbotten, developed and operates this emergency aeromedical system, which uses a converted Boeing 737 jet to transport individuals to hospitals and other medical care locations. The commercial jet can be converted rather quickly – in approximately 6 hours – and can carry up to a dozen patients and an additional 20 “lightly” injured patients, relatives, or other passengers.

This service was first employed during the Mumbai terrorist attacks in December 2008 to evacuate injured Europeans from India to London. According to Annika, a similar system exists in Italy, but other countries have been slow to adopt this public/private aeromedical medical model.

Perhaps we should consider such collaboration in the U.S.

In this country, aeromedical missions are conducted by the Department of Defense using military cargo aircraft. The Swedish model appears to represent an alternative that deserves consideration, with DoD aircraft being reserved as a last resort contingency.

Author: Shelby Rushing, Emergency Management Planner, IEM