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Air Medical Transport Utilization Review in North Carolina

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

Nicholas H. Benson ,
Roy L. Alson ,
Eve G. Norton ,
Ann P. Beauchamp ,
Rita Weber  and
Jorge L. Carreras
Nicholas H. Benson*
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, East Carolina University School of Medicine, Greenville, N.C.
Roy L. Alson
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, N.C.
Eve G. Norton
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Orthopedic Hospital, Charlotte, N.C.
Ann P. Beauchamp
Affiliation:
Samaritan AirEvac, Samaritan Health Services, Phoenix, Ariz.
Rita Weber
Affiliation:
Life Flight, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, N.C.
Jorge L. Carreras
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Memorial Mission Hospital, Asheville, N.C.
*
Department of Emergency Medicine, ECU School of Medicine, Greenville, NC 27858-4354USA
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Abstract

Objective:

To perform a review of the collective experience of all hospital-based helicopter ambulances in the state of North Carolina for compliance with utilization review criteria.

Design:

Flight records of the six members of the North Carolina Aeromedical Affiliation for the months of November and December 1989 were compared with utilization review criteria by an independent reviewer. A secondary review was performed by a staff member for each service. Scene responses and patients flown to a hospital other than the sponsor were evaluated.

Setting:

All six hospital-based helicopter services in North Carolina.

Type of participants:

All available flight records for November and December 1989.

Interventions:

None.

Measurements and main results:

Of 756 transports, 747 flight records were available for review. Initial review demonstrated compliance with the criteria for 713 (95.4%) patients; secondary review showed compliance for 18 of 34 flights not meeting initial review, for an overall compliance rate of 97.9%. Compliance rates for scene responses and transports taken to a hospital other than the sponsoring facility were 96.6% and 94.1%, respectively.

Conclusions:

Review of all flights over a period of two months by all six hospital-based helicopter services in North Carolina using utilization review criteria demonstrated a very high rate of compliance with the established criteria.

Keywords

air ambulanceair medical transportcost-benefitcriteriaemergency medical servicesflight recordsutilization review
Type
Original Research
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 8 , Issue 2 , June 1993 , pp. 133 - 137
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 1993

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Footnotes

*

Presented at the 1990 Association of Air Medical Services Scientific Session, Nashville, Tenn., September 1990

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