Nationwide Children's Hospital Critical Care Transport

Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio runs a critical care transport team. It is a hospital programme. It moves very sick newborns, children and some adults to the hospital by mobile intensive care unit, helicopter or jet aircraft.

Services

The programme works 24 hours a day, every day. It moves patients between hospitals and sometimes takes patients back to the hospital that sent them after treatment. The site says it moves more than 3,000 patients each year and that over half are newborns. It also says the team is one of few in the country that can fly newborns who need nitric oxide therapy and high frequency ventilation at the same time.

The team

The team has nurses, respiratory therapists, transport technicians who are all EMT paramedics, and ambulance drivers. Medical directors approve the care rules, and a doctor gives guidance by phone during each transport.

Aircraft

The hospital has a dedicated helicopter called Monarch 1. It is an EC145 based at The Ohio State University Airport. The site says it flies under instrument rules and has a large cabin where a parent or guardian may ride. Monarch 1 focuses on transfers between hospitals and does not land at accident scenes. All FAA Part 135 services are provided by Metro Aviation, which keeps control of the aircraft. MedFlight remains a partner for more helicopter transports. The programme also lists jet aircraft.

Facts

• Type: hospital programme of Nationwide Children's Hospital
• Helicopter: Monarch 1, operated by Metro Aviation
• Accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems, as the site states