The whole situation makes me wonder about the training and protocols used by the tasking authority when it comes to these retrievals. What are the checks and balances in place for the medical authority responsible? The EMS community have their own go/no go requirements but as they are not told of the circumstances regarding the patient they rely implicitly on the sound judgement and risk assessment procedures in place at the requesting/tasking end of the process. If these processes are not sound or non existent then the EMS crew is being set up.
EMS operators do great work and have on many occasions been able to carryout tasks beyond what is generally required by the supported service. Perhaps this high level of success leads to a level of complacency within the tasking authority and they begin to think along the lines of its been done before it can be done again, and task the EMS agency beyond what it is technically able to perform. Perhaps tasking agencies get lazy and just opt for the admministratively/operationaly easiest option for them. This is why they need ironclad risk assessment procedures in place and people trained with detailed knowledge and understanding of the capabilities of the asset they are about to task.
Only the Medical service responsible for the callout really knows if they rigidly adhered to their procedures, but on face value and with the luxury of hindsight a lower risk alternative should have been utilised.