Med Evac Helicopters To Be A 'Virtual Flying Intensive Care Unit'

Southwest Med Evac, an Omniflight company, announced Friday the opening of a new air medical services base in Roswell, NM.

The base will initiate 24/7 service beginning on March 1, 2009, assisting hospitals and first responders throughout the region with the rapid transportation of critical patients, primarily focused on scene response and inter-facility transport.

This new base will provide air medical transport services to patients and the medical communities of Roswell, Carlsbad, Artesia, Portales, Santa Rosa and Ruidoso, all of which are in New Mexico. These span Chaves, Eddy, Lea, Roosevelt, Lincoln, Guadalupe and Curry counties.

Southwest Med Evac's new helicopter medical transportation will be provided from a new Eurocopter AS350 B3. This aircraft has a cruise speed of more than 130 mph and can transport patients from the region to tertiary care centers in Albuquerque, NM and Lubbock, TX.

The aircraft will operate using night vision goggles for increased safety during low-light operations. The aircraft and flight team will be based at the Roswell Industrial Air Center and will augment the company's already-established fixed-wing operations in Roswell.

The flight crew for the new service in Roswell consists of highly experienced nurses, paramedics and pilots. The crew is equipped with state-of-the-art medical devices, which essentially convert the aircraft into a virtual flying intensive care unit.

Omniflight's Business Development Director Rob Campion said, “We are very excited about the opportunity to provide comprehensive air medical services to the citizens and medical community in Roswell and across the region. Physicians and first responders now have an additional resource to choose from when transporting patients in the event of an emergency or when inter-facility transports are required for medical necessity.

“This helicopter is vital to providing seamless air medical services coverage in Southern New Mexico as there will now be a helicopter available within 30 minutes of any location within the Southern part of the state,” noted Campion.

Southwest Med Evac has served patients and the medical community of New Mexico since 1994 and has transported over 22,000 patients. The company operates eight aircraft from six air medical bases in New Mexico including those in Silver City, Las Cruces, Alamogordo, Roswell, Carlsbad and Hobbs, and four additional bases throughout West Texas. The company is licensed by the New Mexico Department of Health as a critical care provider, and is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems.

FMI: www.omniflight.com/southwestmedevac