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Doctor holding patient's hand to emphasize how important safety is in healthcare logistics.
Author Medi-Ops Team Categories Ambulance Services, Flight Services, Hospitals, Medical & Healthcare News, Wheelchair Transportation

Ensuring Patient Safety Focus in Medical Operations

Patient safety lies at the core of healthcare, encompassing all aspects of medical operations. It is the responsibility of healthcare providers to prioritize and implement measures to safeguard patients from potential harm and adverse events. From the moment patients seek medical attention to their journey throughout the healthcare system, ensuring their safety must remain paramount. When it comes to Medi-Ops’ role in medical logistics, patient safety is a high priority and consideration in every decision made.

Importance of Patient Safety in Medical Operations

Patient safety is not just a legal obligation; it is an ethical and moral imperative for healthcare providers. Every medical facility, regardless of its size or specialization, must adopt a patient-centered approach to guarantee safe and high-quality care. Making patient safety a priority means higher levels of patient trust and outcomes. Patients place their trust in healthcare providers during vulnerable times. By demonstrating a commitment to their safety, providers can strengthen patient trust and foster positive relationships. This also creates better outcomes, saving lives and promoting overall well-being for patients. 

Centering healthcare plans and operations around patient safety also reduces medical errors, whether medication, diagnostic, or procedural-related. Cultivating a space of open communication and implementing strict safety protocols significantly reduces errors, big and small, in the healthcare world. Clearly, facilities, providers, and other organizations involved in the healthcare industry should hold patient safety as their highest priority.

Patient Safety in Medical Transportation

One critical aspect of patient safety often overlooked is medical transportation. When patients need to be transferred between facilities, whether for specialized care, diagnostic tests, or medical emergencies, ensuring their safety during transit becomes of utmost importance. Here are some crucial considerations for patient safety in medical transportation:

1. Proper Vehicle Selection: Healthcare providers must ensure that the transportation vehicles used are appropriate for the patient’s condition and medical needs. Ambulances, ground vehicles, or air medical transport should be equipped to handle any emergency that might arise during transit. Specifically at Medi-Ops, our dispatch center connects clients to the proper form of transportation that will best meet their needs. Ambulance, air medical, or NEMT (non-emergency medical transportation) transportation all offer different types of patient transportation that will best suit different medical needs. Even within those categories, there are several different options that address different patient needs. Medi-Ops helps to navigate those options and the logistics and scheduling needed in order to create the smoothest, safest experience for patients and their families.

2. Trained and Certified Staff: Medical transportation teams should consist of well-trained professionals with the necessary expertise to address any medical situation during transport. From basic life support to advanced life-saving interventions, their skills are critical in ensuring patient safety. Different companies and services have specifically trained staff that can support specific medical transportation needs, whether those be emergent or non-emergent.

3. Adequate Communication and Coordination: Effective communication between the sending and receiving facilities is crucial to ensure a smooth transfer process. This includes sharing essential patient information, medical history, and ongoing treatments to prepare the receiving team adequately. This is why Medi-Ops has personalized operations coordinators to help clients get connected with the best-suited transportation options. As a medical logistics service, we can take care of all the communication and coordination to ensure an efficient, as-stress-free-as-possible transportation situation.

4. Monitoring and Equipment: Patients in transit may require continuous monitoring, especially those in critical condition. The transportation vehicles should be equipped with appropriate monitoring equipment to observe vital signs and respond promptly to any changes. For example, air medical transport services will be outfitted with all the necessary monitoring and equipment for trauma and emergencies, while NEMT companies wouldn’t contain that level of trauma equipment.

6. Adherence to Safety Standards: Compliance with safety regulations and standards set by governing bodies, such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for ground transport or the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for air medical transport, is essential to ensure patient safety. Various other certifications are required pending the vehicle and use as well. Safety compliance is essential in keeping logistics, operations, and transportation companies on the same page and in line with necessary safety standards.

Patient safety in medical operations is an all-encompassing responsibility that extends to every stage of a patient’s healthcare journey. Healthcare providers must continually strive to create a culture of safety and implement robust protocols to safeguard patients from harm. Patient safety in medical transportation is a crucial component that demands specific attention, as the transfer between facilities carries inherent risks. By recognizing the significance of patient safety and making it a priority, healthcare organizations can ensure that patients receive the highest quality of care possible and experience positive health outcomes throughout their medical journey.

Ambulance On-Scene of an Emergency
Author Medi-Ops Team Categories Ambulance Services

Ambulance Services: Explained

Picture the ambulances you see racing down the street today and where you think these innovative patient transport systems may have come from. The first ambulance ever is traced back to the 1400s in Spain. In the midst of the war, Spanish forces began using horses and a creatively constructed lightweight wagon to move injured forces from the battleground. America caught on to this idea during the Civil War and ambulance technology has skyrocketed from there. Not only are ambulances specifically designed for patients, supplies, and fast transportation, but specialized ambulatory services have the ability to serve patients better than ever before.

While many people think of ambulances, or even patient transport, as a one size fits all situation, that isn’t necessarily the case. Many different kinds of vehicles, staff, and services cater to a patient’s exact needs. This makes a big difference when time is of the essence in an emergency or scheduled transportation situation.

Emergency Ambulance Services

The fastest, most efficient transportation while paramedics give urgent medical care to the passenger. That is standard emergency ambulance services. Typically utilized in extremely high-profile injuries or accidents where patients need care immediately, this service can involve ALS (critical condition patients and life-threatening cases) and BLS (non-advanced procedures required during transportation) transport.

ICU Transportation

The ICU (Intensive Care Unit) is staffed and stocked with highly qualified medical professionals and specific equipment to treat patients who are critically ill. These patients sometimes need to be transported between medical care facilities; however, any transportation here comes with a great deal of risk to the patient due to their condition. ICU transportation, therefore, requires a great deal of risk assessment, leading to confirmation of proper staff and specialties, all the necessary equipment specific to the patient’s case and condition, detailed and carefully-chosen routes, and intricate handover processes. Since these patients aren’t necessarily stable, this extra level of thought and care in every detail of transportation is required to reduce transport risk as much as possible.

NICU Transportation

NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) transportation requires advanced capabilities. Families with a child in the NICU already have enough to worry about, and transportation shouldn’t be one of them. NICU transports include extensively trained professionals and a transportation environment designed to protect and serve newborn patients. Newborns have extremely different needs than adult patients, so the staff, environment, equipment, and services provided to the patient during transport are radically different from typical emergency transportation. Learn more about an example of what NICU transportation can look like here! 

Pediatric Transportation

Similar to NICU transport, pediatric transportation teams require specialized staff with specific training and practice in pediatrics. Pediatric medical equipment also varies from standard adult treatment. The staff of pediatric transportation teams are detail oriented and sure to speak with providers, creating high levels of communication from start to finish. 

Stretcher Transportation

Stretcher transportation falls under cases when a patient’s condition isn’t necessarily critical. This falls under NEMT (non-emergency transportation), and these transports are typically scheduled in advance. Moving patients to and from hospitals and care facilities or doctor’s offices and private residences is a prevalent need. Time is still an important factor as punctuality in any medical transportation process is essential. Knowledgeable staff, safe and reliable drivers, and vehicles designed to transport stretchers efficiently and safely are all factors in stretcher transportation.

Bariatric Transport

With patients that need extra help and assistance getting to and from various locations and facilities, bariatric transportation is specifically designed for patients weighing over four hundred pounds. With specialized staff, specifically-designed stretchers, and appropriate vehicles, these types of transport can accommodate several kinds of patients. In these cases, moving in and out of vehicles, sensitive heart and skin conditions, and the need to monitor vitals are typical patient needs. Similar to other forms of transportation, bariatric service providers ensure that the right staff and equipment, as well as appropriately sized vehicles, are readily available and present to assist bariatric patients. 

Long Distance Transport

If a patient requires long-distance transport between care facilities, long-distance ground transportation may be an option. If in non-critical conditions, ground transportation between long distances can be an alternative for patients to flight services and air medical transportation. This can save money and is also an option for patients unwilling or unable to fly. Typically more than 200 miles, transporting patients this way requires the service to consider comfort, medical professionals, and in most cases, accommodation for a family member or friend to accompany the patient. Patients that need to be transported that distance and who are in critical condition, however, may need to resort to air transportation instead.

Flight Services

Air medical transportation is essential in treating patients in rural areas with extreme injuries and those that are in critical condition and require long-distance transport. Planes with proper staffing and equipment for these extreme conditions and injuries are utilized to get the patient to the medical care they need in the safest, most time-efficient way possible.
All ambulatory transportation needs are unique and require different services in order to best treat patients. Understanding these different services is important in the medical transportation world. In an emergency, it can be hard to think through who to call and what you need, which is why transportation logistics partners can be extremely helpful in these situations. Here at Medi-Ops, we offer many ambulatory services, and with a centralized dispatch center get every client connected to the proper service. We, as a company, have connections with all of these services and can connect clients and transport in one call with time and efficiency as a top priority. Time is valuable in emergencies, so client knowledge of which services best fit the emergency is important; however, transportation providers like Medi-Ops can also help to identify the best service possible and move forward in the transportation process.

Author Medi-Ops Team Categories Ambulance Services

What is Behavioral Health Transportation?

Patient transport is critical to executing well in the medical field. Whether that be emergency transportation or non-emergency transportation, medicine should be approached with a patient-first mindset and transportation is not excluded from that. Every patient case requires careful consideration of what type of transport best fits their medical needs. This includes NICU and pediatric transportation, ALS and BLS, emergent and non-emergent, and more. Another form of patient transportation that doesn’t always come to mind when one thinks of medical and patient transportation is behavioral health transport. So exactly what is behavioral health transportation and how can it be done well? Let’s dive in…

Types of Patient Transport

To revisit patient transportation, there are a few noteworthy types of transport to keep in mind, specifically those that Medi-Ops provides.

Ambulance Transportation: Time is essential in emergencies and ambulance transportation takes patients to the medical care they need in the fastest way possible. Different emergencies require different medical professionals, skills, equipment, and services all in regard to transportation. Medi-Ops uses a centralized dispatch center to connect clients and patients with the exact ambulance service needed in just one phone call, whether this is a need for ICU Critical Care in addition to NICU and pediatric services and ALS and BLS companies. Locating the closest service to the patient’s location, Medi-Ops coordinates among all of these services and connections to take care of everything and provide live tracking for ambulance services. Time is of the essence in these situations and is an extremely high priority to transportation services and medical care centers alike. 

Air Medical Transportation: Similar to ambulance transportation, air medical transports are also used in emergencies and are typically for patients requiring attention for burns, traumatic brain or spinal cord injuries, status post trauma, organ transplant recipients, head injuries, and respiratory illnesses. Getting a patient to the medical attention they require, near or far, is the key here. Air Medical transport is almost always used in extremely critical cases, so there is a high need for urgency, efficiency, and safety every time. Utilizing Medi-Ops as your air medical transportation service allows for a patient-first focus and gives patients and clients the freedom to focus on what is important rather than the scheduling, staffing, and timing of air medical transport.

NEMT (Non-Emergency Medical Transportation): When patients have hospital discharges, office visits, or other non-emergent appointments, NEMT is the way to go. This can look different depending on the situation and client, however, these services can include rideshare, ambulatory, wheelchair, or stretcher transport. At Medi-Ops, personalized operations coordinators can match the client to the correct service for medical, personal, and financial needs. NEMT transportation is often utilized when patients don’t have the means to get themselves to medically related appointments. Medical facilities can greatly benefit from having specific NEMT plans or even designated vehicles in order to cater to their patient’s needs in the best ways possible. The demand for NEMT continuously grows, and behavioral health transportation can fall under this category with the need for transportation of patients between medical care facilities.

What Is Behavioral Health Transport?

Behavioral health transport involves specifically designed, equipped, and staffed transportation utilizing secure vehicles in order to ensure the safety and well-being of patients with behavioral and psychological conditions. Secure site transfer for those under specific watch for mental health and behavioral conditions allows for extra supervision and security for these patients.

At Medi-Ops, secure vehicles are used for behavioral health transfers or transports instead of needing an ambulance. Not only does this save on cost, but also allows for quicker, more efficient transportation. The use of secure vehicles and trained personnel ensures patient safety and discretion while also offering the most cost-effective and orderly transport. 

Another note on behavioral health transportation is that laws and restrictions vary from state to state. Specific transportation providers are needed in these situations for legal compliance, patient safety, and well-being. Medi-Ops follows all of these standards and as always works from a patient-first perspective to make sure patient comfort and well-being stay on the top of the priority list.

Why Behavioral Health Transportation Matters

Medical needs and transportation can be scary and unnerving for many patients. Serving patients with various psychological needs is important to ensure the proper care and well-being of these patients. Utilizing secure vehicles and trained personnel ensures high levels of care and discretion for those patients with behavioral health needs. 

All in all, patient transportation is one of the most essential pieces in the medical care process. Different kinds of transportation serve different patients better, and behavioral health transport is no exception. With the multitude of transportation options, Medi-Ops is able to cater to the needs of every patient with our secure options, connections, security, and technology. Patient transportation, including behavioral health transport, should always be a top priority in the medical transportation industry.

Daytime,Detailed,View,Of,The,Back,Of,An,Ambulance.
Author Medi-Ops Team Categories Ambulance Services, Flight Services, Wheelchair Transportation

An Overview of Patient Transportation Methods

When you hear the phrase medical transportation, your mind most likely goes to an individual transported in an ambulance to a hospital. Lights. Sirens. The whole thing. Transporting patients and those needing medical attention is a massive portion of medical transportation. The medical transportation industry also involves moving products, supplies, and courier transportation both on the ground and in the air. The specific aspect of patient transportation and what that can look like with different situations and services can be overwhelming, and many don’t know the different processes and options that exist. What are the forms of patient transportation? And, how does Medi-Ops step into this arena?

Ambulance Transportation

Utilizing ambulances is widely understood as an optimal method of emergency patient transportation. With efficient timing and professional care during transport, this is an incredibly safe and secure option in emergencies and for unstable patients or those requiring immediate care. There are several types of ambulance transportation including ICU, NICU, and pediatric transportation along with bariatric and stretcher transport. The type of ambulance used for each of these specific situations is important to provide the patient with the best care possible.

How does ambulance transportation fall into the bandwidth of Medi-Ops? With a centralized dispatch center, all needs will be met in a timely fashion. Our contracts with ICU Critical Care Transport Companies, NICU and pediatric transport companies, and ALS and BLS companies allow us to schedule and send ambulance services in any situation. Clients calling for ambulance services are never turned away, and with one phone call to Medi-Ops, the correct service for the client’s situation is determined as we locate the appropriate ambulance crew or company closest to the client’s location. Taking care of all of these logistics and locating the correct ambulance to give the best services to our client is taken with the utmost importance, as emergencies are stressful and time is of the essence. With company connections, dispatch services, and live tracking, each client is met with exactly what they need with ambulance transportation through Medi-Ops.

Air Medical Transportation

Emergencies are extremely time-evident and sometimes ambulances just won’t make the cut when a patient needs to travel long distances or to a specific facility. That’s where air medical transportation comes in. Usually, a patient with immediate burns, traumatic brain or spinal cord injuries, organ transplant recipients, head, or respiratory injuries will require air transportation due to the severity of their condition and the extreme time sensitivity of immediate medical attention. Often, patients with extreme injuries such as these will need to be transported to certain facilities that specialize in treatment for their condition. While ambulance transportation is also sometimes used in these cases, air medical transportation provides a faster and more efficient option for those requiring long-distance transportation or those that are in extremely critical condition.

Medi-Ops delivers air medical transportation for patients that require…

  • Air ambulance transport: Patients are moved from their location to a facility that can give them the medical attention they need via helicopter or fixed-wing aircraft
  • ALS and BLS transport: ALS (advanced life support) and BLS (basic life support) can both be administered through air medical transportation services. ALS transport is for patients in more critical condition and has the equipment and staff to treat more life-threatening cases. BLS transport involves EMTs and basic equipment to handle cases that don’t require advanced procedures during transportation.
  • Bariatric transport: Bariatric transport is designed for individuals whose size causes physical and mobility limitations. Professionaly-trained staff, specifically-designed stretchers and equipment, and vehicles with a large enough interior are used in these cases.
  • Commercial flight escorts: When patients are in stable enough condition to go on a commercial flight, a professionally-trained escort can accompany them in order to administer any medications, minor procedures, and overall safety of the patient. If a patient qualifies for this option, a commercial flight is generally more cost-effective than an air ambulance.

In taking care of scheduling, staffing, punctuality, and choosing the correct air medical services for the patient’s specific situation, Medi-Ops allows the client to feel cared for and safe while focusing on what is important. 

Wheelchair and NEMT Transportation

Non-emergency Medical Transportation (NEMT) is not typically the immediate thought of an individual when thinking of patient and medical transport. However, NEMT transportation is a significant part of the everyday lives of many patients and clients. These services are most often used for those with recurring office visits or hospital discharges. Lack of transportation is the main reason why medical appointments are missed, and NEMT can help decrease the risks that come with missed appointments and services. Older populations face these problems regularly, and the utilization of NEMT creates an ease of patient transportation to allow individuals to avoid transportation stress and instead focus on their physical and mental health.

Medi-Ops utilizes our personalized operations coordinators to direct a client with the most effective services and operators upon evaluating medical and financial needs. NEMT transportation has a wide berth including rideshare, ambulatory, wheelchair, and stretcher transport. In addition to offering these services directly to the individual, facilities can partner with Medi-Ops for designated NEMT vehicles, ensuring the highest and most accessible level of patient care possible.

Patient transportation involves several different facets and options, all delivering a patient-first approach to the individual. When in a medical situation, there is always a specific form of transportation that will be most beneficial to the individual requiring care. All of these options and services can sometimes feel overwhelming, and it may not always be obvious which provider, service, and transportation form is the best option. Thankfully, Medi-Ops can help to determine the ideal service and form of transportation for each and every client’s situation.

spinal-injury-patient-being-examined-by-doctors
Author Medi-Ops Team Categories Ambulance Services, Flight Services

Spinal Injury Patients: How to Ensure Safe Transportation

Transporting patients with spine or spinal cord injuries can be a painful and complicated process, especially if the transport is uncurated. Before being admitted to a specialty care center, individuals with acute spinal cord injuries (SCI) must make repeated transfers between rooms, wards, and departments, or even between other hospitals. The goal is to maintain full spinal alignment throughout any movement and handling activities if there is a reasonable suspicion of acute SCI. On every occasion, gentle handling, positioning, and turning can prevent or greatly minimize patient pain and discomfort. It also lowers the risk of skin injury and secondary spinal cord injuries. Here is all you need to know about the transportation of spinal injury patients.

How to Identify a Spinal Injury Patient?

Do not move the person if you suspect a back or neck (spinal) injury. Permanent paralysis and other significant consequences are possible outcomes. Assume a person has a spinal injury if they have any of the following symptoms:

  • There is evidence of a brain injury, as well as a change in the person’s state of consciousness over time.
  • The person is in excruciating agony in his or her neck or back.
  • A significant amount of force has been applied to the back or head as a result of an injury.
  • The person feels weak, numb, or paralyzed, and can’t control his or her limbs, bladder, or intestines.
  • The neck or body is twisted or positioned unusually.

What to Do, if You Suspect Someone to Have a Spinal Injury?

  • Seek immediate medical assistance.
  • Maintain the person’s stillness: To prevent movement, place heavy towels or rolled sheets on both sides of the neck, or keep the head and neck in place.
  • Move your head and neck as little as possible: As much first aid as you can while keeping the person’s head and neck still. Begin CPR if there are no signs of circulation (breathing, coughing, or movement), but do not tilt the head back to access the airway. Gently grab the jaw with your fingers and lift it forward. Start chest compressions if the subject has no pulse.
  • Wear your helmet at all times: Remove the helmet if the person is wearing one. If you need to get to the inside of a football helmet, remove the facemask.
  • Don’t go at it alone: You’ll need at least one other person if you have to roll the individual because he or she is vomiting, choking on blood, or you need to make sure the person is still breathing. Work together to keep the wounded person’s head, neck, and back aligned while rolling them to one side, with one of you at the head and the other at the injured person’s side.

Transporting Patients With Spinal Cord Injuries

Patients who have sustained a serious spinal cord injury may require months of treatment and rehabilitation at spinal cord injury hospitals and treatment facilities. These facilities could be rather far away from the hospital where the patient received their initial treatment. After the patient has been stabilized, MediOps services are the best option for transporting the patient to a new treatment center that is several hours away. To ensure effective transportation, your means of transport should be customized with the following:

1. Firm, Cushioned Surface for Support

The restraints must be firm enough to allow cardiopulmonary resuscitation to be administered, and they must be adjustable to reduce patient movement during transport and side-to-side rotation.

2. Side-to-Side Rotation

The mode of conveyance should allow for side-to-side surface rotation, which is beneficial in reducing pulmonary, cardiovascular, and skin breakdown issues.

3. Trendelenburg/Reverse Trendelenburg

The patient’s head or feet should be able to be elevated and lowered 15 degrees.

4. Integrated Traction

Shall be engineered to sustain consistent force traction when the surface rotates side-to-side, with traction levels ranging from O-65 pounds in 5-pound increments. Traction will be provided for the cervical spine, upper and lower extremities, and will be independent of acceleration.

5. Patient Accessibility

Medical workers must be able to administer routine and emergency nursing care with ease. The surface must allow access to the occipital, thoracic, and rectal areas so that patient care can be performed without removing the patient from the surface or jeopardizing the spine’s stability and alignment.

6. The Radiolucent Surface

Must be built to allow X-rays of the patient’s complete spinal column, chest, and lower abdomen without removing the patient from the surface.

7. Vacuum Mattresses Are Comfortable for Spinal Injury Patients

They reduce tissue interface pressure during the transportation of patients.

8. Spinal Board

A spine board makes it easy to transfer a spinal injury patent from an ambulance stretcher. You might consider having a spinal board while transporting a patient. A patient can be placed on a spine board in a variety of ways. The technique employed will be determined by the amount of space available and the patient’s position inside that space. Throughout the process, use a c-collar or manual cervical in-line stabilization to avoid spinal compression or traction. The patient can be slid onto the backboard, feet first or head first, for lengthwise extrication, such as from a vehicle seat. 

During this procedure, the patient must be moved as a whole. Place one end of the backboard on the automobile’s seat or doorsill. At least two other rescuers move the patient’s body onto the board while one stabilizes the opposite end of the board. 

To preserve neurological function and prevent further injury from spinal instability, it is critical to reducing unintentional spinal motion during transportation of patients with cervical spine injuries.  A variety of transportation methods can be used to deliver injured people to the nearest definitive care facility. The form of transportation chosen is determined by the patient’s overall medical condition, the distance to the next capable facility, and the resources available.

Why Choose Us?

Medi-Ops offers medical services that you can trust. We are a technology-enabled medical logistics and transportation company that brings a fresh approach to medical supply chains. Our objective is to reinvent the business by harnessing our team’s culture of creativity and compassion; producing a more reliable, efficient, and sustainable industry. Our experience is in planning and coordinating all elements of medical transportation, both emergency and non-emergent.  This includes both air and ground medical couriers, ambulance transportation, NEMT transportation, and various professional services. If you need to customize your transportation, contact us today!

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