{"id":47488,"date":"1997-07-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"1997-07-01T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/1997\/07\/01\/for-release-tuesday-july-1\/"},"modified":"2022-08-29T11:02:53","modified_gmt":"2022-08-29T16:02:53","slug":"for-release-tuesday-july-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/1997\/07\/01\/for-release-tuesday-july-1\/","title":{"rendered":"FOR RELEASE TUESDAY, JULY 1:"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/FONT><\/P><\/p>\n

For more information, contact:

\nTom O’Connor, UNMC Public Affairs

\nPhone: (402) 559-4690

\nJo Miller, Saint Joseph Hospital PR

\nPhone: (402) 449-4080

\nJuly 1, 1997 <\/FONT>

\n<\/P><\/DIV><\/p>\n

UNMC, Saint Joseph Hospital Begin Combined Air Ambulance
\nService<\/FONT><\/B> <\/P><\/p>\n

A new era in air ambulance service for the region was launched today,
\nas Saint Joseph Hospital’s Life Flight and the University of Nebraska Medical
\nCenter’s SkyMed have combined their medical helicopter and fixed wing programs
\nunder the new name of MedFlight. <\/P><\/p>\n

The combined program will supply all the services provided by the separate
\noperations but under a single, more efficient program. <\/P><\/p>\n

The new operation is administered by Rocky Mountain Helicopter Inc.,
\na Provo, Utah company which is the nation’s leading provider of emergency
\nair transportation. Rocky Mountain Helicopter has provided aircraft, maintenance
\nand pilots for both services for more than 10 years. <\/P><\/p>\n

The combined program provides several immediate benefits to all three
\norganizations, said Terry Paulsen, associate hospital director for University
\nHospital at UNMC. <\/P><\/p>\n

"The need to become more efficient was the driving force behind
\nthis consolidation. By combining the two programs into a single service,
\nwe will eliminate costly duplication of services and realize cost efficiencies
\nby having just one dispatch center and one flight crew," Paulsen said.
\n<\/P><\/p>\n

Medical helicopter programs across the country generally lose money,
\nsaid Howard Regsdale, regional vice president for marketing with Rocky
\nMountain, and both SkyMed and Life Flight had been operating at a loss.
\nBy combining the programs, Rocky Mountain hopes to cut costs and not operate
\nat a loss, he said. <\/P><\/p>\n

Based on historical costs, MedFlight is expected to realize about $1
\nmillion in reduced expenses, said Mary Gorman, senior vice president for
\npatient services at Saint Joseph Hospital, with UNMC projecting expense
\nreductions of about $750,000 and Saint Joseph Hospital projecting reductions
\nof about $250,000. UNMC’s expenses have been higher, because it has operated
\nboth a fixed-wing plane service as well as a helicopter service. <\/P><\/p>\n

As a further means of reducing costs, Rocky Mountain Helicopter has
\nestablished one regional dispatch center at 1915 S. 38th Ave. to handle
\nemergency air transportation calls for the Omaha and Kansas City, Mo. areas.
\n<\/P><\/p>\n

All former flight crew members were offered the opportunity to apply
\nfor positions with the combined program, Gorman said, and many did. Officials
\nfrom both programs also have worked hard to assure that all former flight
\ncrew members have been offered a parallel position within their respective
\ninstitutions. <\/P><\/p>\n

Eleven people from the SkyMed and Life Flight flight crews are now working
\nfor the MedFlight service. In addition, several former SkyMed and Life
\nFlight flight nurses have accepted positions as critical care nurses at
\neither Saint Joseph Hospital or University Hospital. <\/P><\/p>\n

The chief flight nurses for the Life Flight and SkyMed programs will
\nhold key positions with the MedFlight service. Michelle Logsdon, chief
\nflight nurse for Life Flight, has been appointed program director. Steve
\nUllrich, chief flight nurse for SkyMed, was designated chief flight nurse
\nfor MedFlight. Richard Walker, M.D., who has been serving as medical director
\nfor SkyMed, was named medical director for MedFlight. <\/P><\/p>\n

One fully-staffed helicopter and crew will be stationed on a rotating
\nbasis at either Saint Joseph or University Hospital, operating 24 hours
\na day. A second helicopter will be available during peak hours. <\/P><\/p>\n

All flights will be staffed by a nurse and a paramedic, Paulsen said,
\nand a neonatal specialty team will be used for transports involving small
\ninfants. <\/P><\/p>\n

MedFlight will provide emergency service within about a 150-mile radius
\nof Omaha, an area that -more- includes parts of five states — Nebraska,
\nIowa, Missouri, Kansas and South Dakota, Paulsen said. <\/P><\/p>\n

Under the Omaha trauma system, Saint Joseph Hospital is the designated
\ntrauma center on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, while UNMC is
\nthe trauma center on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. <\/P><\/p>\n

Some of the rural or outlying paramedic or emergency medical transport
\nservices will benefit from the consolidation, Gorman said. "There
\nis now only one service to call, one phone number to remember, and no more
\ntrying to figure out who is the designated trauma center that night."
\nTo contact MedFlight, EMT services can call toll-free to 1-888-481-7040.
\n<\/P><\/p>\n

"We feel this is a win-win situation for both UNMC and Saint Joseph
\nHospital. The new MedFlight name is indicative of the cooperative spirit
\nbetween the two hospitals," Gorman said. "We feel it sends a
\nstrong message that we used part of each program’s name in the new name."
\n<\/P><\/p>\n

A new color scheme and logo have been designed, Gorman said. Crew members
\nwill wear identical uniforms similar to the navy blue jump suits presently
\nworn by both crews. Some of these jump suits have already arrived. It will
\ntake several months before the two helicopters are painted. When finished,
\nthey will be silver with green, blue and red trim. <\/P><\/p>\n

Life Flight started in 1979, while SkyMed started in 1981. Combined
\nthe two programs have transported more than 15,000 patients and flown more
\nthan 1 million miles. It’s anticipated that MedFlight will make between
\n900 and 1,000 helicopter flights annually as well as about 110 fixed-wing
\ntransports. <\/P><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For more information, contact: Tom O’Connor, UNMC Public Affairs Phone: (402) 559-4690 Jo Miller, Saint Joseph Hospital PR Phone: (402) 449-4080 July 1, 1997 UNMC, Saint Joseph Hospital Begin Combined Air Ambulance Service A new era in air ambulance service for the region was launched today, as Saint Joseph Hospital’s Life Flight and the University […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","department-press-release"],"yoast_head":"\nFOR RELEASE TUESDAY, JULY 1:<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"For more information, contact: Tom O'Connor, UNMC Public Affairs Phone: (402) 559-4690 Jo Miller, Saint Joseph Hospital PR Phone: (402) 449-4080 July 1,\" 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