SonoSite’s NanoMaxx ultrasound system is helping the Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance (TVCAA) to provide potentially life-saving pre-hospital care.
Dr Syed Masud, a consultant in A&E and pre-hospital care at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, said: “In addition to my work at John Radcliffe, I have been a member of the medical team at TVCAA, based at RAF Benson, for almost two years.
“Pre-hospital care has become a sub-speciality in its own right, and the helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) plays an important role in the delivery of both trauma and critical care.
“HEMS has been using the NanoMaxx for about a year now. It is working well and proving very robust, and we are really pleased with it.
“The NanoMaxx is used on all major trauma and cardiac arrest calls – which account for the vast majority of TVCAA callouts – allowing us to perform abdominal FAST scanning, chest and cardiac ultrasound. Previously, we were reliant on clinical acumen, but with ultrasound we have added a new dimension and an extra diagnostic window; instead of listening to the chest or feeling for a heartbeat, we can actually see it on screen, which is a big advantage.”