SUMMIT, WI – In order to be prepared for mass casualty events, Aurora Medical Center in Summit, Wisconsin, held a drill to receive ‘injured’ patients. The mode of transportation: a Blackhawk helicopter.
Helicopters are regularly used by hospitals across the country to transport patients from the area where they are injured to a hospital that can treat them. However, National Guard Sergeant First Class Eric Furbee said most hospitals are not used to the sheer size of a Blackhawk.
“We practiced offloading patients from the Blackhawk helicopter and integrating with civilian agencies who have probably never seen a Blackhawk helicopter or been close to a Blackhawk helicopter,” Sergeant Furbee said. “Most civilian helicopters can transport one patient, we can transport up to four patients.”
When these events occur, Sergeant Furbee said its crucial for hospitals across the state to be prepared for the influx of patients.
“(We were training for) a building collapse where it is going to completely overwhelm the medical system or network, and we need to transport them out to disperse those patients throughout the state.”
Trauma centers are separated into tiers, determined by the severity of injuries they can treat. Aurora Medical Center in Summit is a Level II Trauma Center, meaning they can treat nearly any trauma injury.
The ‘injured’ patients were citizens pretending to be injured, and a dummy. After being transported inside Aurora Medical Center, Emergency Services Medical Director Dr. Christopher George said he felt the drill went well and that the repetition helps them prepare.
“The logistics of taking care of a patient and moving them to the next step …. the more times you practice it, the better you are at it.”
For Dr. George, the practice came in handy in 2021.
“The Waukesha Christmas Parade event, we had multiple patients coming into multiple different hospitals.”
If a person is injured in Green Bay and the decision is made to bring them to Southeast Wisconsin, transporting them via helicopter would take roughly 45 minutes as opposed to a 2 hour drive.
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