It is not correct to imply that nothing is being done.
Before effective action can be taken, it is first necessary to establish the root causes of the accidents. Once the causes have been established (and it is not as simple as it first appears), they can be addressed.
As will be seen, the causes will be many and varied; there will be clusters and trends, and this is where systematic measures will have the best chance of success (single accident mitigation achieves only a 'sticking-plaster'/'band-aid' effect).
Here is an extract from the latest IHST Newsletter:
http://ihst.org/images/stories/docum...wsletter-3.pdf
The OSI-HEMS Team
By Ira Blumen
“Opportunities for Safety Improvement in Helicopter EMS”
(OSI-HEMS) is a research project that has brought together aviation and medical experts to undertake the most comprehensive review of U.S. HEMS accidents to date. A root cause analysis is being conducted on an estimated 120 HEMS accidents dating back to 1998. Through this research and analysis, concrete recommendations will be made to compare the potential benefits, cost, effectiveness and feasibility of various factors that can prevent HEMS accidents or reduce the impact of accidents.
Key to the experimental design and analysis of our data (the HEMS accidents) is the scope, strength and experience of the research team that has come together. Bringing together such a team was one of the goals established by theoriginal core group that set out to develop this project. It was concluded that the best way to attract the support, knowledge and expertise that we needed to undertake and complete this research was to invite participation from throughout the air medical community. Air medical associations, aviation operators and manufactures were approached and the response was overwhelming. Our research team has now expanded to over 40 aviation and air medical professionals, with an average of 25 individuals present at each meeting. Our team currently represents:
Associations
- Air & Surface Transport Nurses Assoc (ASTNA)
- Air Medical Physician Assoc (AMPA)
- Air Medical Safety Advisory Committee (AMSAC)
- American Assoc for Respiratory Care (AARC)
- Assoc of Air Medical Services (AAMS)
- Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Services (CAMTS)
- Helicopter Assoc International (HAI)
- International Assoc of Flight Paramedics (IAFP)
- National Assoc of Air Medical Communication Specialists (NAACS)
- National EMS Pilots Assoc (NEMSPA)
Helicopter operators (currently 10 different 135 certificate holders)
- Air Evac Lifeteam
- Air Methods Corporation
- CareFlite (Dallas/Fort Worth)
- EraMed
- Intermountain Life Flight
- Med-Trans Corporation
- Metro Aviation
- Omniflight Helicopter, Inc
- PHI Air Medical
- REACH
Manufacturers
- Bell Helicopter
- American Eurocopter
- Turbomeca USA
-Federal Aviation Administration Aviation training
- FlightSafety International Aviation insurance- AirSure Limited
Members of the research group first met in early 2007 and the first “working” team meeting took place in January 2008. We anticipate continuing our work through the summer of 2009.
Editors note: due to recent events in the HEMS community, the IHST will be working with Dr. Ira Blumen, a well known HEMS accident analyst. His team is using a process similar to that developed by the US JHSAT team. The IHST plans to use the recommendations developed by Ira's team to form a HEMS specific implementation team late in 2009.
Jim