Helicopter landing pad

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Valerie,

We are presently having luck in modelling the association between helicopter
response time and mortality for trauma victims in South Australia.
Preliminary results (statistically significant) suggest that a ten-minute
delay in response time is associated with a 4.3% increase in mortality.  It
is not immediately clear whether a ten-minute delay waiting for a helicopter
retrieval team to arrive at the scene of the patient (ie our study) can be
taken to reflect accurately on the consequences of a ten-minute delay
getting the patient from the helicopter into the hospital (ie your
situation).

For the purpose of your argument you could hypothesize that delays in the
early pre-hospital phase are equivalent in effect to delays in the late
pre-hospital phase.  Our estimate of a 4.3% increase in mortality per
ten-minute delay arose in a patient population characterised with the
following median values:  helicopter response time 60 minutes; RTS 6.6; NISS
17; ISS 14.  To the extent that your case mix matches ours, you can believe
to a greater degree our estimate of the association between time and
mortality.

Dorothy Owen and Ron Somers
South Australian Trauma Registry
Epidemiology Branch
South Australian Department of Human Services
Tel: 08 82266361- Ron Somers
Fax:08 82266291
email: Dorothy.Owen@dhs.sa.gov.au
      

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