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Sat Oct 18 18:21:45 BST 2008

No, you are not alone Dr. Matthews.  I could not have said what you did
better myself.  As I have said beforehand, if I can contribute to
organization or execution of such a meeting, I am willing to put myself and
my abilities at the beckon call of those with seniority to me.

On Sat, Oct 18, 2008 at 1:00 PM, Marc Matthews - MedPro MMC X <
Marc_Matthews at medprodoctors.com> wrote:

> Sir,
>
> I am not alone in saying that we look up to you. When we attend your
> tremendous meeting in Las Vegas, we listen to you and the many influential
> leaders that you have assembled for advice on the challenges in the current
> trauma world. We also look to all of your and those leader's papers in the
> literature to refine, re-define and fine-tune the critical care issues and
> acute surgical techniques with which we then use to treat our sickest
> patients.
>
> My thoughts were with the raising death toll in this pre-hospital,
> aero-medical transport field, the concern over the appropriate launch
> criteria (clinical versus mechanism versus non-trauma), and the risk that
> many crews are asked to take with or without the proper aeronautical
> instruments that should be considered standard by today's technology.
> Perhaps a national meeting could be arranged to review and make
> recommendations as to the aforementioned. Perhaps that meeting even mandates
> change in many areas in such a mode of transport, where it would be
> considered unethical or "poor care" for patients to be flown and physicians
> or medical directors would be no longer able to do so without following much
> more formal guidelines.
>
> Who knows the literature best? Or more appropriately, who could take all of
> the literature and assemble the greatest minds that know this field and come
> out with a declaration of what is known, what is advised and what is not
> advised for this field? With personal bias exposed and evidence based
> research placed at the forefront, such a position could in fact be used to
> influence change. Perhaps even national research projects could be generated
> that could involve trauma and non-trauma centers to answer questions on such
> a massive scale that the results could no longer be refuted. Safety would be
> the goal for patients and crew. The FAA and NTSB could be invited to watch
> the process or participate.
>
> If panels at this meeting have a consensus or if research projects are
> developed, implemented, and later completed, they could learn of what
> changes needed to be implemented. That body of information could then be
> taken to the congressional or state legislative bodies to demonstrate what
> was found and what the medical literature supports and create change form
> the data as it would save lives and money. It may take time, effort and
> money, but a course should be plotted for completion of projects and perhaps
> a follow-up meetings to finish the details.
>
> Such action will save lives. It could save insurance companies big money,
> so that they are not paying for helicopter flights from a local crash scene
> to a hospital that is 10 minutes driving time because someone felt that it
> would be easier or better or safer or however they were feeling at that
> moment. I had a case just last night where a 9 percent burn was flown from
> one institution to mine. The patient was "stable" without airway compromise
> and normal vital signs, but the other institution had a protocol that said
> that "all burns must be flown"! We asked them several times not to fly the
> patient and we were refused. Now, the family will now have to pay (eat) over
> $20,000 dollars for that flight instead of $500 for ground transportation.
> The patient will be discharged 36 hours after arrival. The risk to the crew
> and the waste of resources including fuel and the potential need for that
> helicopter somewhere else in their county having now been lost is just
> unforgivable and happens many times, but I am sure we all have our war
> stories.
>
> The bottom line for me was reading for several weeks the urgency in the
> e-mails and at times the vitriol from www.trauma.org. In your last Las
> Vegas meeting you praised this website in bringing the world-wide trauma
> community to together. The audience agreed and applauded. Well, here we sit
> reading for weeks about this problem. So, I was thinking, if there is one
> person that has the ability to bring together this community in person,
> including the greatest minds in trauma, critical care and acute surgery, it
> is Dr. Kenneth Mattox. It is not presumptuous to ask a great man for help.
> He knows how to organize and direct such a meeting (we read your e-mails
> about your helping the Katrina and Rita evacuees at the Superdome and have
> seen the organization at your Las Vegas meetings), how to do the research,
> who knows who the participants SHOULD be so that this will not a "white
> washing" as suugested in a recent e-mail, and how to effect change. Dr.
> Kenneth Mattox could bring together these forces in just more than an
> afternoon session but at a larger meeting, perhaps even a closed meeting at
> first to organize, where ideas could be flushed out and a clearer
> understanding of what needs to have happen could be decided, and then action
> taken in whatever form it must, such as a national research project, a
> position paper, incorporation of other bodies such as the ACS COT, NFTC,
> EAST, etc, into this effort. The "industry" must have medical evidence based
> knowledge and input rather than pecuniary concerns or misguided approaches
> that would not meet such evidence based criteria. It has the greatest chance
> of the fox watching the henhouse. There must be input into those industry
> "Standards". We here in Arizona have had three devastating incidents just
> this year, one of which involved one of my trauma nurse's family members.
>
> It is a tall order, Dr. Mattox, to ask this of you, and I do appreciate
> this. However, if there is one man that could do this, organize this, meet
> this challenge, I doubt that few on this website would disagree, that it is
> you. Now, I apologize for placing you in this "hotseat" or confronting you
> in front of this site, calling you to action, but perhaps we, the trauma and
> medical community, need you as a leader that is recognized, to help us
> confront what needs to be confronted or change what needs to be changed. As
> for the details on how to do this, when, where, who, those details are for
> much greater minds than mine, but I do believe that the people are crying
> out for change. I think we know who that person is and the only question is
> when . . . I will now sit down and be quiet as I feel I have said perhaps
> far too much. I apologize if I have offended anyone, including Dr. Mattox or
> the body of this tremendous website. Perhaps it is my juvenile angst, hubris
> or immaturity, or all of the above, but it pains me to see this happening
> and I feel powerless to do anything.
>
> Very respectfully,
>
> Marc Matthews, MD
>
>
> CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This message and any of the attached documents
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>
> CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS PROTECTED under ARS § 36-445, ARS § 36-2403 and
> Federal Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: trauma-list-bounces at trauma.org [mailto:
> trauma-list-bounces at trauma.org] On Behalf Of KMATTOX at aol.com
> Sent: Friday, October 17, 2008 7:47 PM
> To: trauma-list at trauma.org
> Cc: Redstart at aol.com; KMATTOX at aol.com
> Subject: Re: Block that PUNT (and panel)
>
> Dr. Matthews:   I am intrigued by your  suggestion.     My role at the
> meeting you cited is to be a  catalyst to bring together in one venue the
> persons
> and subjects you  cited.     It is too late for this year to have a special
> day, but I might have a "blue sky" noon session on Tuesday if there is
>  interest.
>      I would never be so presumptuous  as to even know all of the agenda
> items or just who all the stakeholders  are.    I do know that today State
> Senators from Maryland  began  calling for witnesses to testify to them
> about this
> issue.   I do know that it is better if industry creates the STANDARDS  and
> Principles, rather than government creating the  regulations.
>
> k mattox
>
>
> In a message dated 10/12/2008 11:01:15 A.M. Central Daylight Time,
> Marc_Matthews at medprodoctors.com writes:
>
> Okay,  Trauma.org, then everyone on this list server should form a meeting.
> All of  you can get together and discuss it with every single paper ever
> written. You  can even invite people that are from the government and those
> from outside the  United States and you can bring these great minds together
> and wrangle it out.  Imagine the best and the brightest all coming together.
> Imagine deciding the  reasons for transport and saving lives from needless
> death yet defining the  reasons for the use of such transport and then
> tracking your changes. It can  and should be done instead of complaining
> about others meeting that will  either white wash this or do it wrong!
>
> Dr. Mattox, every year you bring  together many to a meeting in Las Vegas
> to educate. I been there three times.  I have Dr. Wisner, Knudsen, Rhee, the
> Dorlacs, Johanigman, Sise, McSwain,  Fildes, Tuggle, and many others, true
> heroes that discuss the latest on  trauma, acute care surgery and critical
> care. You have even expanded your  meeting to include a Disaster
> Preparedness ssection.
> Why not a day, two or  three somewhere to resolve this issue? Of anyone
> that can organize such a  meeting and decide such issues that has the power
> to org anize, it is you. It  is a large enough issue for people to have
> disscussed this for weeks now. If  somewhere "they" are doing it "wrong",
> then do it right.
> Have that meeting and  then bring it out in the literature and take it up
> the stairs to Washington.  Get the ACS COT or NFTC behind you and get the US
> trauma world to go to their  representatives and change it.
>
> This website could be the used as a  launch pad to help save lives in an
> organized fashion but someone needs to  lead. Now who is it going to be? I
> nominate Dr. Mattox and then everyone on  this web server to help who has
> been so bold as to write in and speak up. The  squeaky wheel gets the
> grease! Either that or we sit here and do nothing. We  need a leader. Who
> will that be . . . ?
>
> MRM
>
> ________________________________
>
> From:  trauma-list-bounces at trauma.org on behalf of KMATTOX at aol.com
> Sent: Sat  10/11/2008 7:24 PM
> To: trauma-list at trauma.org
> Subject: Block that PUNT  (and panel)
>
>
>
> My wife is from Oklahoma.    I and many  of my friends are  from Texas.   I
> thoroughly enjoyed  watching the Oklahoma/Texas game  today.     I really
> did
>  not
> have a dog in the  hunt.    But the game with its swings  back and forth
> was a
> GREAT  game.    I heard the stands  yell, "BLOCK THAT PUNT" even   when the
> team came to the line to  try for two points and NOT  PUNT.
>
> It is with GREAT  sadness and frustration, that I have learned and inform
> anyone who wishes  to know, tremendous, TREMENDOUS forces have formed to
> BLOCK that Panel  which is being proposed to be formed to look at safety
> standards , flight criteria,  weather conditions,  charges, and  quality
>  review by the
> regions trauma system.     It is  really SAD  that forces in industry, in
> hospitals, and some  individuals have put  considerable pressure on local
> agencies, state  agencies, federal agencies, and  even individuals to state
> that a "panel"
> is not needed, that the indirect data  is sufficient, and that  deaths have
> occurred in ground ambulance  crashes.       A huge diversionary tactic is
> being
> orchestrated with as great a focus as  either the democratic or republican
> presidential and congressional  campaign of 2008.
>
> If this campaign to BLOCK the PANEL is  successful or even achieves a
> DELAY, then the next deaths from a  preventable helicopter crash, carrying a
> patient that did not need such a  transport or even a higher level of care,
> must be
> attributable to societal  lethargy and business strong armed  tactics.
>
> k
>
>
> In a message dated 10/11/2008 3:17:51 P.M. Central  Daylight Time,
> bbledsoe at earthlink.net writes:
>
> Perhaps
> "the  panel" will be that  introspection.
>
> Bryan
>
> Bryan Bledsoe,  DO,  FACEP
>
>
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-- 
Stephen L. Richey, CRT
Aviation Injury Research Project Leader
Saginaw Valley State University
Work E-mail: slrichey at svsu.edu
Home Office Phone: 248-366-4452

"It is the characteristic excellence of the strong man that he can bring
momentous issues to the fore and make a decision about them. The weak are
always forced to decide between alternatives they have not chosen
themselves."- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

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Block that PUNT (and panel)