Tampa General Hospital Aeromed

Aeromed Transport Services is the critical care air and ground transport program of Tampa General Hospital in Florida. Since 1989, it has provided advanced medical transport services 24 hours a day, seven days a week, all year round. The service brings hospital-level care to patients with complex medical needs at emergency scenes or during transfers between healthcare facilities.

The air transport operations are carried out by Metro Aviation, Inc. Aeromed flies three helicopter types including the EC 145, EC 135, and Bell 407, equipped to support critical patients. The program also operates ground ambulances offering basic and advanced life support transfers. Notably, Aeromed is the only program in its region with ground capability for heated high-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy.

Aeromed cares for a diverse patient population including adults, children, infants, newborns, and expectant mothers needing advanced obstetric care. The teams manage complex conditions such as trauma, cardiac issues, stroke, neurological emergencies, and provide neonatal support in incubators with NICU team assistance. Whole blood transfusions on scene for trauma care are also part of the program’s services.

The program completes thousands of missions annually. In recent years, it transported about 1,900 patients by air and over 4,200 by ground per year. Since the ground division began in 2023, it has completed more than 8,500 ground transports, and overall Aeromed has flown approximately 50,000 helicopter missions. The service collaborates with local EMS and fire agencies to enhance trauma care.

Aeromed’s ground transport capabilities include advanced airway management such as rapid sequence intubation, full mechanical ventilation, invasive line monitoring with arterial, Swan-Ganz, or intracranial pressure lines. The air transport teams support advanced interventions including ECMO, temporary pacemakers, LVAD, intra-aortic balloon pump support, and thoracostomy procedures during flight.

The program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems (CAMTS) since 2013, ensuring adherence to high standards in medical transport. Its mission focuses on providing safe and reliable transport with clinical excellence, education, and community partnership.

Based in Tampa, Florida, Aeromed serves patients across the region, extending Tampa General Hospital’s critical care services beyond its walls to people in need statewide.

Services

• Air medical transport
• Ground medical transport
• Advanced airway management
• ECMO support
• Mechanical ventilation
• Neonatal incubator transport
• Whole blood transfusion
• Trauma patient care
• Cardiac and stroke patient transport
• Advanced life support