POSITION PAPER
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF EMS PHYSICIANS
MEDICAL DIRECTOR FOR AIR MEDICAL TRANSPORT PROGRAMS*
Stephen H. Thomas, MD, MPH, Kenneth A. Williams, MD, David W. Claypool, MD,
for the 2002 Air Medical Services Task Force of the National Association of EMS Physicians
the NAEMSP Air Medical Services
Task Force. The current Task Force
members gratefully acknowledge
the work of the previous docu-
ment’s authors: Luis F. Eljaiek, Jr.,
MD, Robert Norton, MD, and
Richard Carmona, MD.
Air medical-related organiza-
tions include the Association of Air
Medical Services, the National
Flight Paramedics Association, the
National Flight Nurses Associa-
tion, the National Association of
Air Medical Communication Spec-
ialists, the National Emergency
Medical Services Pilots Associa-
tion, the National Association of
EMS Physicians, the Commission
on Accreditation of Medical Trans-
port Systems, and the Air Medical
Physician Association. The Aero-
space Medical Association remains
active in advancing air medical
issues, particularly for the military.
The roles, responsibilities, and
qualifications for the medical
director have been addressed par-
tially by some of the above-men-
tioned organizations. All groups
who have published on or dis-
cussed this issue have recognized
the diversity of physicians in this
position and have directed their
guidelines at general attributes
rather than at a specific specialty.
Most recently, the Commission on
Accreditation of Medical Transport
Systems has published standards
describing the qualifications and
role of the medical director.
INTRODUCTION
The National Association of EMS
Physicians (NAEMSP) recognizes
that the position of medical director
of an air medical transport program
is an integral part of the program.
Therefore, guidelines for education,
experience, and performance of the
medical director are essential to
ensure quality patient care and pro-
vide a safe, proficient, and cost-
effective operation.
This document, initially pub-
lished in Prehospital and Disaster
Medicine in October–December
1995 as a contribution of the the
1995 Air Medical Services Task
Force, has been updated in 2002 by
DISCUSSION
It has been decades since the initial
use of helicopters to evacuate
wounded soldiers directly from the
battlefield. During the Vietnam
conflict, a system was employed
that not only provided evacuation,
but also provided the initiation of
medical care to the wounded at the
front line. These helicopter pro-
grams were supervised by the mil-
itary medical corps with the assis-
tance of flight surgeons, many of
whom were members of the
Aerospace Medical Association.
Military models served as the basis
for development of civilian med-
ical evacuation programs.
Since the 1970s, air medical
transport programs, and national
organizations with interest in air
transport, have increased in num-
ber. These organizations share the
common goal of providing a safe,
efficient, and well-organized sys-
tem for delivering care to critically
ill and injured persons. Further-
more, these groups were instru-
mental in implementing policies
and procedures to attain these
goals.
Dr. Thomas is at Boston MedFlight and in
the Division of Emergency Medicine,
Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massa-
chusetts; Dr. Williams is in the Department
of Emergency Medicine, Brown University,
and the Air Medical Physician Association,
Providence, Rhode Island; and Dr. Claypool
is at Mayo Medical Transport and in the
Department of Emergency Medicine, Mayo
Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota.
Approved by the NAEMSP Board of
Directors May 28, 2002. Received June 8,
2002; accepted for publication June 8, 2002.
Address correspondence and reprint
requests to: Stephen H. Thomas, MD, MPH,
Department of Emergency Services, MGH
Clinics Building, Room 115, 55 Fruit Street,
Boston, MA 02114-2696. e-mail: <thomas.
stephen@mgh.harvard.edu>.
The program’s mission state-
ment must be considered when
selecting criteria for a medical
director. Most programs deal with
a wide spectrum of patient care
settings, from out-of-hospital trau-
ma and medical emergencies to
*This document was initially published as:
Eljaiek LF Jr, Norton R, Carmona R. Medical
director for air medical transport programs.
Prehosp Disaster Med. 1995;10(4):283-5.
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