Friday, October 14, 2011

High cost of medical helicopter transportation

St. Louis, MO (KSDK) - Transferring some patients from one hospital to another by helicopter is expensive and may not get patients the care they need--or any faster--than an ambulance would.

Harvard researchers analyzed the transfer times of neurosurgical patients to a trauma center for one year.

They found more than half of the patients sent by chopper did not need immediate surgery, and could have been stabilized before being sent to the trauma specialists in an ambulance.

Transporting patients by helicopter can cost as much as $25,000. An ambulance ride often costs about $1,000.

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