Medical Transport

The medical transport is the operation which consists in transporting a patient or a casualty whose state justifies the recourse to an adapted and assisted transport; one speaks about “patient” when the person to be transported was seen by a Médecin (transport is then prescribed), and about “victim” when the person is dealt with by first-aid workers within the framework of the Prompt-help.

The medical transport, which is regulated in terms of means implemented (vehicle, personnel…) is to be distinguished from the transport of patient, who can be to him carried out according to free methods. The criterion of separation between medical transport and transport of patient is related to the state of the patient, evaluated by the doctor, who decides to prescribe or not a medical transport (SMUR, ambulance, Sitted Transport Professionnalisé…) adapted to the state of the patient and the cost more adapted.

One distinguishes two types of medical transport:

“primary education transport”: it is about the transport of the patient or the victim since the place of faintness or the accident (residence, public highway, receiving establishment of the public) towards the structure of care; one speaks also sometimes about “evacuation”;
“secondary transport”: it is about the transport of the patient of a structure of care towards another, for example of the Hôpital towards a place of convalescence or another hospital.

Medical transport can be done:

on the road, by Ambulance, or for a primary education transport by a vehicle of prompt-help (such as the Vehicle of help and assistance to the victims of the firemen French);
by Helicopter, when transport must be done quickly and with a good comfort, and in the case of a primary education transport when the access instead of the accident is complicated;
by Plane, on the very long distance, one speaks then about “repatriation”, air medical evacuation.

External bond

Hygiene and medical transport, a document of CCLIN South-western.
Sick and seriously injureds in helicopter, the General practitioner n°1928

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