The role of the anaesthesiologist in air ambulance medicine

Current Opinion in Anaesthesiology
Stephen J M Sollid, Marius Rehn

Abstract

The care administered on air ambulances has become increasing complex. This has led to a discussion among experts as to whether air ambulance travel should be manned by physicians. This review provides evidence in support of anaesthesiologists being the physician-leaders in air ambulance medicine, because of their training in advanced airway management, critical care, and resuscitation. Successful prehospital care requires the ability to perform a complex set of advanced diagnostics and interventions. These include airway management, haemorrhage control, pain management, point-of-care diagnostics, complex interfacility transport, and advanced interventions. This skill set closely mirrors the training and expertise of anaesthesiologists. There are few studies investigating the specific benefit of anaesthesiologists in air ambulance medicine. However, current evidence indicates that their presence does improve patient care and safety. Future studies on this topic should use evidence-based quality indicators and standardized data sets to seek answers to optimal staffing of air ambulance teams.

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Citations

Nov 15, 2018·Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica·Karianne LarsenHans Morten Lossius
Jul 25, 2019·The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery·Jürgen KnappMichael Bernhard
Aug 31, 2018·BMC Emergency Medicine·Daniel KornhallMikael Gellerfors
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Feb 7, 2019·International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care·Gitte Valentin, Lotte Groth Jensen
Oct 27, 2020·Journal of Anaesthesiology, Clinical Pharmacology·Shibu SasidharanM Babitha
Nov 20, 2020·Scandinavian Journal of Trauma, Resuscitation and Emergency Medicine·Peter Hilbert-CariusBjörn Hossfeld

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