ABSTRACT
Aeromedical assignments may be described as primary, secondary, tertiary or quaternary responses. Primary responses are commonly known as ‘scene flights’ and are usually of short duration. The aircraft may enter as the first responder or at the call of a ground prehospital care provider. Aircraft involved in secondary responses transport patients from outlying emergency departments where some degree of stabilization has been performed; the patient is then delivered into the care of a higher level facility. A tertiary response occurs when an aeromedical aircraft transports a hospital inpatient to another facility for definitive care and a quaternary mission is when an aircraft is used to repatriate patients from overseas. Aeromedical aircraft may also be requested to perform search and rescue, public relations, fire suppression, or law enforcement missions. The use of aircraft in the transport of drugs, medical supplies, and human tissues or organ harvest teams, represent an additional facet of aeromedical care.
