FP-C #3 Flashcards
The three organizational models for air transport programs
Hospital-based, public service agencies, private service agencies
Define: IFR
Mode of flight used when minimal cloud clearance and visibility requirements are not met
Towards upwind
what direction will helicopters orient themselves when landing
Define: Sterile cockpit
Term used to describe silence invoked during takeoff and landing and other critical phases of flight
What are the three basic modes of EMS communication?
Written. Verbal. Electronic.
7 Common Relative Contraindications to Air Transport
severe anemia, hemoglobinopathy, MI complicated and after 5 days, uncontrolled arrythmia, 24+ week gestation, recent eye surgery
4 Major Factors in HEMS crashes
human error, weather, mechanical failure, controlled flight into terrain
NTSB
national transportation safety board- conducts studies for improving transportation safety.
Two primary entities that conduct flight following
EMS communications center and ATC
The two main aircraft types in transport medicine
Fixed- wing and rotor- wing
UHF (ultra-high-frequency) radio waves
These frequencies are advantageous because they have high penetrating power and can easily pass through buildings. Disadvantages are that they only travel a short distance and are limited to line of sight. These frequencies are more applicable in urban areas.
Hard Landing
when the aircraft contacts the ground with much more force than normally required for a landing
Spacial disorientation
occurs when a sensory illusions are experienced during flight that send false input to the brain
Part 135: Basic IFR Weather Minimums (NIGHT)
1000’ (or higher) within a horizontal distance of 5 miles
Repeater
A device that receives transmissions from a low-wattage radio and rebroadcasts the signal at a higher wattage and perhaps a different frequency. This increases the range of mobile transmissions, especially over rough terrain.
Trunked
A system that pools several frequencies and uses a computer to route incoming transmissions to the next available frequency. This frees the dispatcher or field unit from having to search for an available frequency.
CAMTS personnel standards
shifts 12 hrs, not on-duty for >16hrs in 24hrs, those working>16hrs in 24 can take unscheduled breaks PRN
12 o’clock position
this the helicopter position that you approach the aircraft
Mechanism of Injury
This is the parameter that HEMS is no longer basing flight criteria solely off of
What is the function of an encoder in a communications system?
A combination lock on a radio. By transmitting a series of tones, a transmitting station can unlock the receiver at a particular radio so it can receive traffic intended for it. Allows base stations to share a frequency without having to listen to traffic not intended for them.
Air medical transport (AMT) and treatment times
AMT showed to reduced door to catheterization time, door to operating room time, and door to thrombolytic therapy time, considerably
This is the leading predictor of overtriage in the medical literature.
high percentages of discharge from ER rates
Define: Overtriage
Occurs when considering a patient to be in graver condition than he or she really is.
Define: flight following
The tracking of an aircraft’s progress throughout its mission
List three alternative technologies that can be used to supplement radio communications.
Cellular telephone. Facsimile. Computer.
Responsibilities of EMS dispatcher
Call taking. Alerting and directing response. Monitoring and coordinating communications. Giving prearrival instructions. Maintaining incident records.
Human error types
skill deficiency- perception errors- decision making errors
Helicopter shopping
the practice of making sequential calls to numerous air medical providers in an attempt to find a service that will accept a call that other services have declined
Part 135: Basic VFR Weather Minimums
1200’ ceiling (or above) and 3 miles visibility
helicopters first action upon water ditching
flip upside down
water ditching
intentional landing into a body of water
Disadvantages of fixed wing transport
Cost between $10,000 for short flights to $100,000 for Intercontinental- must maintain landing fields runway length restrictions, hangers required