Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center established Life Flight as the first emergency aeromedical service in Ohio and Michigan. It was only the second service of its kind in the country to operate with an Emergency Medicine resident physician acting as chief medical officer on every flight. The Life Flight program is the only hospital-based aeromedical transport which operates three Dauphin helicopters and an Augusta. Serving a 130-mile radius, Life Flight transports patients from the scene of an accident or another hospital to a facility able to provide more comprehensive care. Of the 2,000 plus missions flown in 2001, 25% were flights transporting victims from an accident scene. Over one-half of all flights involve the transport and stabilization of trauma patients. The remainder of flights consists of various medical, cardiac, pediatric, high-risk obstetrical, neonatal, and burn emergencies.

Because of the ever-increasing demand, our second helicopter was obtained in May, 1993, through a joint venture with Medical University Hospitals, which is a major teaching center for the Medical University of Ohio in Toledo. A third Helicopter was added in the Summer of 1999 to keep up with additional demand, and a fourth helicopter was added in July, 2002. Beginning at the EM-2 level, residents begin participating in this tremendously exciting and educational aspect of Emergency Medicine.

For further information about Life Flight, please go to http://www.lifeflight.cc/