Helicopter interfacility transport of pediatric trauma patients: Are we overusing a costly resource?
BACKGROUND
Helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) provide an important service to decrease interfacility transport times compared with ground ambulances. Although transport via HEMS is typically faster, the decreased transportation time comes at the expense of increased risks to the patient and flight crew and higher costs. Therefore, it is important to balance the immediate patient needs with the risk and expense of HEMS transport. Our objective was to determine how frequently pediatric patients who are interfacility transported to a Level 1 pediatric trauma center (PTC) receive a time-sensitive intervention.


METHODS
This was a 4-year (2008-2012) retrospective study of children aged 0 year to 18 years who were interfacility transported to a single Level 1 PTC by HEMS. Patients were identified using the trauma registry at the PTC. A previously published outcome was used to determine if patients received time-sensitive interventions. Driving distance to the PTC was determined using Google Maps. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.


RESULTS
A total of 207 cases were identified (median age, 7 years; interquartile range, 2-12 years; 29% female; median Injury Severity Score [ISS], 11; median Revised Trauma Score [RTS], 8). Forty-three percent (90 patients; 95% confidence interval, 37-50%) of patients received a time-sensitive intervention; these cases had a median age of 6 years (interquartile range, 2-11 years; 32% female; median ISS, 13; median RTS, 8). Of the 117 patients who did not receive time-sensitive interventions, 81% were within 120 driving miles of the PTC and 49% were within 60 miles.


CONCLUSIONS
This study suggests an overuse of HEMS for interfacility transfer of injured pediatric patients to a PTC. Although these patients likely required the resources of a PTC, they could perhaps have been transported by ground ambulance without detriment. Further research is needed to investigate how interfacility transport modes are selected and if these decisions can be improved without increasing evaluation times at transferring facilities.


METHODS
Epidemiologic study, level V.
From the Departments of Pediatrics (M.T.M., K.C.W., P.C.D., M.D.S.), Surgery (D.M.G.), Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics (E.B.L.), Medical College of Wisconsin; and Children's Hospital of Wisconsin (C.W.), Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Michael T
MT
Meyer
David M
DM
Gourlay
Keith C
KC
Weitze
Matthew D
MD
Ship
Patrick C
PC
Drayna
Cinda
C
Werner
E Brooke
EB
Lerner
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D017732:Air Ambulances / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006776:Hospitals, Pediatric; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D010360:Patient Transfer / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D061665:Time-to-Treatment; D014193:Trauma Centers; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*