In response to the statements regarding OB training, I appreciate you stating
the obvious. In the ideal world, maternal transports could be done by
dedicated maternal transport teams. Trust me when I tell you that I know
this better than anyone. You see, I developed and directed the first
dedicated maternal transport program in the state where I lived. For many
years I thought I wanted OB patients to only be transported by those types of
teams. But then........reality hit..........
I have been actively involved in the air medical environment for a number of
years, and the reality is that even the biggest transport programs ended up
pooling their resources and making "dedicated" teams cross-train. The goal is
still to provide the patient with the best trained personnel, but it allows
programs more flexibility in staffing (among other things).
This said, my decision was to develop a training program that would give
transport teams the best didactic information that I could in a limited time
frame. The course I offer provides the didactic information is a classroom
setting. It also provides each student and program with "suggested" clinical
competency checklists. The checklist is rather extensive and includes not
only labor and delivery knowledge, but also encompasses competencies for
things such as transport vehicle safety.
I know from experience that there are many "specialty transport teams" that
don't know a thing about the vehicle that they are putting themselves and
their patient in. How many "specialty team members" who do not do routine
transports know how to locate an ELT, carry survival kits, operate the radio,
or function as an air crew member? It requires more than "specialized "
experience to be a proficient "specialty team member". There are even
dedicated maternal transport programs that aren't using fetal monitoring
enroute. How are they providing more technical care than any other
non-specialty flight team members.
Everyone has their opinion, and I hope you can see mine. Thank you for the
opportunity to clarify my educational goals.
I truly am thankful that there are MANY transport teams who want to provide
quality care to patients. That is now.........and always will be my goal
!!!!!!
Thank you for your candid response.
Sincerely,
Pamela J. Adams, RN / EMT-P
President
O.B. STAT, Inc.
23 Turnberry Drive
Arden, North Carolina 28704
(828) 684-1708
