Full Text Available
Note: Clicking the button above will open the full text document at the original institutional repository in a new window.
Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review
Introduction - Helicopter search and rescue in Africa is conducted primarily by military organizations. Since 2002 the Western Cape of South Africa has had a dedicated contracted civilian helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) conducting air ambulance, terrestrial and aquatic rescue. This is th...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Division of Emergency Medicine
2022
|
| Subjects: | |
| Tags: |
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1867613280676085760 |
|---|---|
| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Park-Ross, Jocelyn Frances |
| author2 | Hodkinson, Peter |
| author_browse | Hodkinson, Peter Park-Ross, Jocelyn Frances |
| author_facet | Hodkinson, Peter Park-Ross, Jocelyn Frances |
| author_sort | Park-Ross, Jocelyn Frances |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Introduction - Helicopter search and rescue in Africa is conducted primarily by military organizations. Since 2002 the Western Cape of South Africa has had a dedicated contracted civilian helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) conducting air ambulance, terrestrial and aquatic rescue. This is the first description of the operations of an African helicopter rescue service. Objective - To describe the terrestrial and aquatic helicopter rescue activity of a civilian operated HEMS in the Western Cape, South Africa from 1 January 2012 – 31 December 2016. Methods - A five-year retrospective review was conducted using data from the organization's operational database, aviation documents, rescue reports and patient care records. Patient demographics and activity at time of rescue, temporal and geographical distribution, crewing compositions, patient injury, triage, clinical interventions and rescue techniques were analysed. Results – A total of 581 search and rescue missions were conducted, of which 451 were terrestrial and 130 aquatic rescues. The highest volume of rescues was conducted within the urban Cape Peninsula. Hoisting using a rescue harness was the most common rescue technique used. 644 patients were rescued. Uninjured or minorly injured persons represented 79% of the sample. Trauma (33%, 196/644) was the most common medical reason for rescue, with lower limb trauma predominant (15%, 90/644). The most common clinical interventions performed were intravenous access (108, 24%), spinal immobilization (92, 21%), splinting (76, 17%) and analgesia administration (58, 13%). Conclusions - The patient demographics and rescue activity described are similar to those described in high-income settings. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/36146 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:33:37.862Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2022 |
| publishDateRange | 2022 |
| publishDateSort | 2022 |
| publisher | Division of Emergency Medicine |
| publisherStr | Division of Emergency Medicine |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/36146 Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review Park-Ross, Jocelyn Frances Hodkinson, Peter Howard, Ian Emergency Medicine Introduction - Helicopter search and rescue in Africa is conducted primarily by military organizations. Since 2002 the Western Cape of South Africa has had a dedicated contracted civilian helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) conducting air ambulance, terrestrial and aquatic rescue. This is the first description of the operations of an African helicopter rescue service. Objective - To describe the terrestrial and aquatic helicopter rescue activity of a civilian operated HEMS in the Western Cape, South Africa from 1 January 2012 – 31 December 2016. Methods - A five-year retrospective review was conducted using data from the organization's operational database, aviation documents, rescue reports and patient care records. Patient demographics and activity at time of rescue, temporal and geographical distribution, crewing compositions, patient injury, triage, clinical interventions and rescue techniques were analysed. Results – A total of 581 search and rescue missions were conducted, of which 451 were terrestrial and 130 aquatic rescues. The highest volume of rescues was conducted within the urban Cape Peninsula. Hoisting using a rescue harness was the most common rescue technique used. 644 patients were rescued. Uninjured or minorly injured persons represented 79% of the sample. Trauma (33%, 196/644) was the most common medical reason for rescue, with lower limb trauma predominant (15%, 90/644). The most common clinical interventions performed were intravenous access (108, 24%), spinal immobilization (92, 21%), splinting (76, 17%) and analgesia administration (58, 13%). Conclusions - The patient demographics and rescue activity described are similar to those described in high-income settings. 2022-03-16T07:14:16Z 2022-03-16T07:14:16Z 2021 2022-03-16T00:08:12Z Master Thesis Masters MPhil http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36146 eng application/pdf Division of Emergency Medicine Faculty of Health Sciences |
| spellingShingle | Emergency Medicine Park-Ross, Jocelyn Frances Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review |
| title_full | Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review |
| title_fullStr | Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review |
| title_short | Rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape, South Africa: a five-year retrospective review |
| title_sort | rescue activity of a civilian helicopter emergency medical service in the western cape south africa a five year retrospective review |
| topic | Emergency Medicine |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36146 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT parkrossjocelynfrances rescueactivityofacivilianhelicopteremergencymedicalserviceinthewesterncapesouthafricaafiveyearretrospectivereview |