Corrected Report
As a neighbor of Children's, you may be interested to learn more about the lifesaving emergency medical services the hospital provides to children in our region. The following information summarizes the use of the helipad at Children's and describes the medical needs of children served by emergency landings.
Due to printer error, the information on the recent report was outdated. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Landings at the helipad at Children's campus must meet
agreed upon medical criteria, and only occur to treat the
most critical medical conditions. Any one of the following
conditions authorizes landing at Children's campus helipad:
unstable airway, inability to ventilate or maintain
oxygenation, inability to maintain adequate cardiac output,
inability to maintain adequate cerebral blood pressure flow,
persistence of unstable vital signs.
| Children's Hospital Emergency Room | UW Intramural Field | |
| July | 1 | 14 |
| August | 4 | 15 |
| September | 5 | 9 |
| October | 6 | 10 |
| November | 6 | 10 |
| December | 4 | 8 |
| QUARTER THREE - JULY THRU SEPTEMBER, 2001 | |||||||
| Date | Landing | Departure | Transported From | Age | Diagnosis | Outcomes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July | |||||||
| 25 | 2:27 pm | 3:47 pm | St. Peter - Olympia | Newborn | Respiratory distress | Hospitalized 9 days | |
| August | |||||||
| 1 | 6:42 am | 8:08 am | Naval Hospital - Oak Harbor | Infant | Cardiopulmonary arrest | Died | |
| 5 | 1:15 pm | 2:39 pm | St. Joseph - Bellingham | Infant | Respiratory distress | Hospitalized 3 days | |
| 8 | 4:14 pm | 5:24 pm | Cascade Valley - Arlington | Toddler | Respiratory distress | Hospitalized 6 days | |
| 25 | 7:41 pm | 8:38 pm | Kittitas Valley - Ellensburg | Toddler | Near Drowning | Hospitalized 13 days | |
| September | |||||||
| 4 | 4:17 am | 5:31 am | Skagit Valley - Mt. Vernon | Infant | Respiratory distress | Remains inpatient (4/1/2002) | |
| 5 | 6:31 pm | 7:54 pm | Valley Medical Center - Renton | School age | Heart block | Hospitalized 7 days | |
| 12 | 6:50 am | 7:47 am | Providence - Everett | Toddler | Restricted air space by FAA (9/11) | Hospitalized 7 days | |
| 13 | 5:14 pm | 5:51 pm | Providence - Everett | Toddler | Restricted air space by FAA (9/11) | Hospitalized 7 days | |
| 19 | 7:07 am | 7:57 am | Olympic Memorial - Port Angeles | Adolescent | Status asthmaticus | Hospitalized 4 days | |
| QUARTER FOUR - OCTOBER - DECEMBER, 2001 | |||||||
| October | |||||||
| 4 | 2:04 pm | 3:17 pm | Kittitas Valley - Ellensburg | School Age | Asthma | Hospitalized 9 days | |
| 8 | 10:56 pm | 12:11 am | Stanwood Medics - Stanwood | Infant | Respiratory distress | Hospitalized 8 days | |
| 16 | 2:22 pm | 3:26 pm | Whidbey General, Coupeville | Newborn | Status epilepticus | Hospitalized 12 days | |
| 19 | 10:20 am | 11:08 am | Valley Medical Clinic - Renton | School Age | Pulmonary hemorrhage | Died | |
| 19 | 11:51 am | 12:53 pm | Silverdale Clinic - Silverdale | Toddler | Respiratory distress | Hospitalized 9 days | |
| 29 | 12:15 pm | 1:16 pm | Eastside Hospital - Redmond | Toddler | Diabetic Ketoacidosis | Hospitalized 15 days | |
| November | |||||||
| 1 | 10:48 pm | 11:29 pm | Skagit Valley - Mt. Vernon | Newborn | Prematurity: respiratory distress syndrome | Hospitalized 114 days | |
| 5 | 11:11 am | 12:22 pm | Cascade Valley - Arlington | Newborn | Respiratory failure; cardiopulmonary arrest | Hospitalized 6 days | |
| 6 | 5:51 am | 7:13 am | Whidbey General, Coupeville | Newborn | Respiratory distress | Hospitalized 20 days | |
| 8 | 7:57 pm | 9:12 pm | Cascade Valley - Arlington | School age | Status asthmaticus; respiratory arrest | Hospitalized 4 days | |
| 11 | 4:15 pm | 6:30 pm | St. Joseph - Bellingham | Adolescent | Pneumonia | Hospitalized 8 days | |
| 26 | 7:45 pm | 9:26 pm | Skagit Valley - Mt. Vernon | Newborn | Pulmonary hemorrhage | Hospitalized 28 days | |
| December | |||||||
| 6 | 5:35 am | 6:33 am | Evergreen Hospital - Kirkland | Toddler | Diabetic ketoacidosis | Hospitalized 16 day | |
| 15 | 8:41 am | 9:27 am | Auburn Medic 6 - Auburn | School age | Asthma | Transferred to Mary Bridge 12/15 | |
| 23 | 6:35 pm | 7:42 pm | Skagit Valley - Mt. Vernon | Infant | Respiratory distress; pneumonia | Remains inpatient (4/1/2002) | |
| 24 | 1:30 pm | 2:30 pm | Skagit Valley - Mt. Vernon | Infant | Dehydration | Hospitalized 21 days | |
Cardiopulmonary arrest - respiratory failure progressing to cardiac arrest
Dehydration - loss of body fluids leading to unstable blood pressure and heart rate
Diabetic Ketoacidosis - an abnormal buildup of sugar and acids in the blood resulting in a decreased level of consciousness
Heart Block - life threatening heart beat resulting in unstable blood pressure
Near Drowning - water submersion resulting in cardiopulmonary arrest , initially responds to resuscitation efforts
Pulmonary hemorrhage - bleeding into the lungs resulting in blockage of the airway
Respiratory distress - increased breathing difficulty due to pneumonia or secretions blocking the airway - does not respond to oxygen therapy
Respiratory distress syndrome - lung immaturity in premature infants resulting in collapse of the small airways and accumulation of fluid in the lung, requires oxygen and mechanical ventilation
Status asthmaticus - a prolonged asthma attack that does not respond to medication or oxygen therapy resulting in respiratory failure
Status epiliepticus - convulsions or seizures that cannot be controlled with medications
Explanation of Diagnoses
To our Neighbors:
A Medical Review Committee meets twice a year to
review all emergency medical landings at Children's ED.
This committee includes two representatives from the
neighborhoods surrounding Children's, the director of
the Seattle-King County Department of Public Health,
two physicians independent of Children's and key
medical leadership from Children's Hospital.
The committee continues to find that the vast majority
of these emergency medical landings, which must meet agreed upon
medical criteria, are justified. We continue to evaluate
each situation to determine whether a safe alternative
to the landing is available.
A report to the community, outlining emergency medical helicopter
landings at Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center /
a summary of flight activity
is published quarterly by Children's
Hospital and Regional Medical Center, Seattle WA. If you have
comments or questions, please call Suzanne Petersen, Director
Community, Government Affairs and Advocacy, at (206) 526-2125 or Sarah
Erickson, Assistant Director Community, Government Affairs and Advocacy at (206) 527-3881,
or write them at Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center,
P.O. Box 5371, CH-01, Seattle, WA 981015-0371.
The FAA restricted airspace following 9/11 necessitated these patient landings at the Children's Helipad instead of UW Intramural Field
c/o 2002 Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center. All rights reserved.