title: Investigation of final destination hospitals for patients in helicopter emergency medical services (doctor-helicopter) in Fukushima Prefecture.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In using an emergency medical service helicopter with an emergency medicine doctor on board (doctor-helicopter), transporting all patients to the University Hospital (base hospital for the helicopter) could cause a chronic bed shortage at the University Hospital. It is also disadvantageous for patients from distant areas. We investigated whether appropriate hospital selections are being carried out in Fukushima Prefecture.
  
  
  METHODS
  The subjects of the study were patients who were transported by doctor-helicopter since the services started. We investigated the medical conditions of patients at emergency scenes, whether they were transported to a hospital inside or outside the region, the means of transportation, and the final destination hospital.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 450 flights, of which 295 were to emergency scenes, involving 307 patients. The majority were trauma patients (191 patients, 62.2%). The final destination hospital was the University Hospital for 104 patients (33.9%); 99 patients (30.3%) were transported to three emergency and critical care medical centers (ECCMCs) in other regions. Most patients were transported to appropriate hospitals in the respective regions. The means of transportation from the emergency scene was by doctor-helicopter in the largest number of cases (223 patients, 72.6%), and the final destination hospital was ECCMCs in 81.6% of cases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients from emergency scenes are transported by doctor-helicopter to appropriate hospitals in the region, and hospitals in each region are cooperating with the doctor-helicopter operations.
authors.affiliation: Emergency and Critical Care Medical Center, Fukushima Medical University Hospital, 1 Hikarigaoka, Fukushima 960-1295, Japan. c-tase@fmu.ac.jp
authors.forename: Choichiro
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Tase
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ohno
authors.forename: Arifumi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hasegawa
authors.forename: Yasuhiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tsukada
authors.forename: Jiro
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shimada
authors.forename: Yukihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ikegami
mesh_terms: D017732:Air Ambulances; D000552:Ambulances; D003422:Critical Care; D004190:Disasters; D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D010361:Patients; D010561:Personnel Staffing and Scheduling; D014187:Transportation of Patients; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000628:therapy