Northern Rescue Helicopter’s Dr Dave Peak and critical care paramedic Will Thompson with the organisation's new Hamilton T1 ventilator.
Northern Rescue Helicopter’s Dr Dave Peak and critical care paramedic Will Thompson with the organisation's new Hamilton T1 ventilator.
Northern Rescue is fundraising for lifesaving medical equipment used often to help Northland’s most critically ill patients.
Six Hamilton T1 ventilators, each worth $53,000, and 10 video laryngoscopes that cost $60,000 in total are needed for Northern Rescue’s fleet, spread across Northland and Auckland.
Two ventilators have been sponsored, leavingfour that need funding, as well as the video laryngoscopes that will be used in Northern Rescue’s helicopters, rapid response vehicles, the Whangārei ambulance and training rooms.
Paul Davis, critical care paramedic and deputy clinical operations manager in Whangārei, said the current fleet of ventilators were nearing the end of their operational life after about eight years of use.
“Patients requiring mechanical ventilation are among the most critically unwell, ranging from those in respiratory failure due to chronic illness, to trauma patients with multiple severe injuries, including head trauma.”
The mechanical ventilators are used by Northern Rescue’s clinicians about two to three times per week on average.
Davis said advanced devices like the Hamilton T1 enabled the delivery of ICU-level ventilator strategies in-flight as they had improved battery performance, oxygen efficiency and a user-friendly interface that enhanced clinical safety.
“The fact is as patient numbers and complexity increases – especially during inter-hospital transfers, which is a substantial part of our workload – we need more advanced technology that the more modern ventilators provide.”
Davis said the ventilators allowed clinicians to stabilise patients and transport them safely to care centres. They are essential in minimising secondary complications during transport.
Ross Aitken, Auckland-based clinical operations manager and critical care paramedic at Northern Rescue, said the video laryngoscopes have been in use for five years and are also nearing the end.
Video laryngoscopes are used in placing endotracheal tubes in patients who need help to manage their airway and ventilation.
Video laryngoscopes are used in placing endotracheal tubes in patients needing help managing their airway and ventilation.
“Northern Region has been using video laryngoscopy in the pre-hospital setting for a decade. During this time video laryngoscopy has become the standard of care when delivering pre-hospital anaesthesia,” Aitken said.
“These video laryngoscopes are then used in conjunction with ventilators, which are what allow our clinical teams to provide critical care to our sickest patients in the Northern Region.”
Northern Rescue Helicopter Ltd has already received a major boost to its life-saving operations thanks to donations from the Four Winds Foundation and Trillian Trust, each funding one Hamilton T1 ventilator.
Fonterra has kindly made a donation to help cover the cost of brackets needed to mount the ventilators.
People interested in donating can either phone 0800 273 728 (0800 2 RESCUE) or email donate@nest.org.nz.
