Ambulance kitted out to carry very obese patients

Medics use an adjustable-height air-lift (blue) and a 'hover mat' (red ) to shift a man onto a strong stretcher that can be winched into the ambulance. Photo / Greg Bowker

The rising number of patients who weigh more than 150kg has forced St John to kit out New Zealand's first emergency ambulance for the severely obese.

Until now, these people have sometimes had to be dragged across the floor before being manhandled into a standard ambulance and strapped down on a mattress on the floor, after the vehicle's two stretchers have been removed. All this takes time, which is scarce in medical emergencies.

It is unsafe for both patients and ambulance officers, says St John's Auckland patient transfer manager, Simon Bird, who notes the increasing rate of officers having back problems as the rate of obesity rises.

New Zealand's adult obesity rate has doubled in 30 years: more than a quarter are obese now, and around 3 per cent - more than 60,000 adults - are classified severely obese.

St John is putting the finishing touches to a "bariatric" ambulance that can safely carry the heaviest patients.

The vehicle would have helped last Sunday when a woman weighing around 250kg and suffering a medical emergency had to be taken to Middlemore Hospital. Nine people - ambulance officers and firefighters - used a tarpaulin to manoeuvre her through her home and lift her into the ambulance. It took an hour.

Wellington's ambulance service has an ambulance for moving extremely obese patients who are stable, but Mr Bird says St John's newly refitted vehicle, based in central Auckland, is the first in New Zealand that can safely handle both emergency cases and medical transfers. This is mainly down to two items powered by an electric pump and which look like fancy camping mattresses: a "hover-mat" and air-lift.

The hover-mat has numerous tiny holes in the base which create a thin air layer allowing it to slide on smooth surfaces when dragged - with the patient lying on top. The hover-mat is slid on to the air-lift. The air-jack is pumped up to the height of the stronger-than-usual stretcher and the hover-mat is slid on to it. The stretcher is wheeled to the ambulance and winched up its ramps.

The ambulance has cost around $200,000. The SkyCity Auckland Community Trust contributed $20,436, which paid for the hover-mat, air-lift and stretcher.

The trust's chairman, Jock Irvine, said it was delighted to help pay for projects like the bariatric ambulance, which would make a big difference for severely obese patients.

Mr Bird said if St John had the money available from grants and donations, it would like to build a second bariatric ambulance for Auckland and one for each of the organisation's other four regions.

ADDED EXTRAS

* Stretcher rated to carry 725kg.
* Motorised rope winch to haul stretcher up ramps into ambulance.
* Blow-up "hover-mat" to move patient on smooth surfaces.
* Air-lift to raise patient for transfer to stretcher.
* Cost of ambulance and extras: around $200,000.