Who can be transported by military aircraft for emergency medical treatment?

The Ministry of National Defense has just issued Circular No. 193/2016/TT-BQP promulgating the Regulations on organizing emergency transportation of injured and sick people in coastal areas, islands, remote areas by military aircraft.

This regulation takes effect from January 11, 2017, in which the conditions for emergency transportation by military aircraft include injured subjects, emergency cases, acute illnesses with life-threatening manifestations that exceed the emergency and treatment capabilities of military medical facilities, need to be immediately transferred to lower-level hospitals as directed by the Director of the Military Medical Department and have sufficient factors to ensure flight safety.

A flight carrying patients from Truong Sa Lon Island landed at Tan Son Nhat airport.

The above subjects include:

1. Officers, professional soldiers, non-commissioned officers, soldiers, workers, civil servants and contract workers of Military Medical units on duty in sea areas and islands under the sovereignty, sovereign rights and national jurisdiction of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; remote areas with difficulties in transportation.

2. Vietnamese citizens legally operating in sea areas and islands under the sovereignty, sovereign rights and national jurisdiction of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

According to regulations, when a patient is admitted to a military medical facility for emergency treatment and there is an order to transport the patient by military aircraft, the person in charge of the military medical facility shall perform the following:

For the Truong Sa Islands and DK1 platform area: report the patient's condition to the Director of the hospital in charge and the Chief of Military Medicine at the higher level to the Chief of Military Medicine of the Navy;

For nearshore islands and remote areas: report the patient's condition to the superior military medical director, to the military medical director of the military region or the military medical director of the Navy, the military medical director of Corps 15, or the military medical director of Corps 16.

The director of the hospital in charge, the Chief of the Navy's Military Medical Service, the Chief of the Military Medical Service of the Military Region, the Chief of the Military Medical Service of the 15th and 16th Corps report to the Military Medical Department on the patient's condition and request emergency transport by military aircraft. The report includes: Patient's full name, age, rank, position or occupation; medical condition and the process of first aid, emergency care, and prognosis; necessary requirements for emergency resuscitation during transport; equipment, vehicles, medical instruments, drugs, chemicals, and emergency escort team on the plane. The report is made by phone, then in writing.

The unit assigned to organize the emergency transport flight shall assign specific tasks to the air force units under its authority. The air force unit assigned to the task shall prepare the flight plan and report to the competent authority for approval according to regulations.

The regulations clearly state that when picking up patients and the emergency escort team, the flight crew will guide the location of the people, the location of the necessary medical equipment and tools, and the mandatory requirements to ensure safety during the flight. In case of unexpected events due to sudden bad weather or incidents, the flight crew is responsible for handling and reporting to the Command Center for assistance. After turning off the engine and stopping the propeller, the door will be opened and the patient transferred; at the end of the emergency flight, the air force units will summarize and report to their superiors.

The emergency escort team consists of: 1 team leader, 1 emergency resuscitation specialist and 2 nurses. The team members have professional qualifications to meet the requirements of emergency patient care during transportation. Medical equipment, drugs, chemicals and consumables are suitable for emergency patient care on the plane.

According to Dantri