Seconds can make all the difference in patient care during an emergency and though simple in appearance, a new helipad south of Hoopeston Regional Health Center is helping every minute count thanks to state funding and support from a local trust.
Hoopeston Regional, a critical access hospital, has had a helipad since the 1960s, and since integrating into the Carle Health system in 2012. The emergency department relied on transporting patients with complex needs by Carle Arrow Ambulance to the helipad and aboard Airlife, a mobile emergency care space stationed at Carle Foundation Hospital.
Thanks to two sources - $100,000 in capital funding sponsored by State Sen. Chapin Rose of Mahomet through the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and the annual award of approximately $200,000 from the Charlotte Ann Russell Charitable Trust, the new helipad is closer to the emergency area of the hospital. There is no longer a need for the added step of a patient transport by ambulance to the helipad.
“Airlife helps provide a bridge between critical access hospitals in rural areas and facilities where additional care is provided, so we are grateful to help make that transition for the patient that much easier with a new helipad,” Heather Tucker, DNP, RN-BC, administrator Hoopeston Regional Health Center, said.
Reilly Stebbins, BSN, RN, manager, Clinical Operations, Hoopeston Regional Health Center, said having a critical access hospital serving the rural area is essential and the new helipad supports efforts to provide high-quality care by improving coordination and access for patients needing advanced levels of care.
“The addition of our new helipad is a major step forward for our hospital and our community. In a rural setting like ours, minutes matter. Our new helipad allows us to get critically ill and injured patients to higher levels of care faster, improving outcomes and saving lives.”
For more information about AirLife and emergency medical services at Carle Health, visit Carle.org.
Categories: Culture of Quality, Community