FinnHEMS

FinnHEMS is a state-owned company based in Vantaa, Finland. It runs the national physician helicopter service. Its main task is to bring an emergency doctor to sudden, life-threatening situations.

Services

FinnHEMS provides helicopter emergency medical service across the country. It works with the wellbeing services counties and the HUS Group. The company says its doctor and medical helicopters reach 80 percent of Finns within 30 minutes of an alarm.

Aircraft and bases

There are eight bases: Vantaa, Turku, Kouvola, Tampere, Seinäjoki, Kuopio, Oulu and Rovaniemi. Each base has a helicopter and a fast response car. The fleet has ten helicopters, five Airbus EC135 and five Airbus H145. The EC135 aircraft serve Vantaa, Turku, Tampere and Seinäjoki. The H145 aircraft serve Oulu, Rovaniemi, Kuopio and Kouvola. Flight operations are run by the subsidiary FinnHEMS Lentopalvelut Oy.

Who it is for

The service covers people across Finland who need a doctor on scene in an emergency. Most base crews include an emergency doctor, a pilot and a HEMS paramedic or rescuer.

In each base, a duty crew keeps a helicopter ready. Vantaa, Turku, Tampere, Seinäjoki, Kuopio and Oulu crews include a doctor, a pilot and a HEMS paramedic or rescuer. At Kouvola the crew has two pilots, a doctor and a paramedic. At Rovaniemi it has two pilots and two paramedics. The company says it flies nearly 3,000 hours each year.

Facts

• Owner: the Finnish state
• Head office: Vantaa, at the Helsinki airport area
• Ten helicopters: five EC135 and five H145
• Eight bases across Finland
• Roots in Medi-Heli, a donation funded support association founded in 1992
• Took over responsibility for the national service in 2011