New EMS service to improve emergency response times

TALLADEGA, Ala. (WBRC) - Residents in rural areas of East Alabama will have another way to get to the hospital in emergency situations, according to medics.

Medics unveiled a new service to help improve emergency response times, thus saving lives. The new EMS service called Survival Flight helps by speeding up the process of getting patients to the hospital.

“Really we’re just filling a gap where there’s need for a speedy service, a speedy critical care level service for the people in the area.”

Survival Flight operates out of the Talladega Airport and will serve Talladega and St Clair Counties. According to officials, the new service can transport patients to UAB or Atlanta hospitals when needed.

“There’s a lot of patients generated into the helicopter EMS system from this area. This spot in particular is good for us. A lot of times when the ambulance folks in particular need us, they are close enough to just come here to the airport to deliver the patient here which cuts down on the amount of time of us getting up and going landing at a scene and it just makes for a quicker patient transfer and then subsequently a quicker ride for them to the hospital,” said flight paramedic Mitchell Upchurch

Every EMS helicopter is staffed with a paramedic and a nurse, along with the pilot. Officials say they hire veteran paramedics and ER Nurses with ICU experience for Survival Flight.

“It’s a good location it really is, there’s other helicopters around and I really don’t think we’ve hurt any of their business at all because they were under the same pressure we were, we’re all getting a ton of flights and really we all needed relief,” said flight manager Heath Drummond.

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