A first-of-its-kind helicopter operation was carried out by the Israel Air Force, Soroka Medical Center, Beersheba, and Joseftal Hospital, Eilat, to evacuate a young woman connected to an Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) machine, spokespeople for the hospitals announced on Saturday.
An ECMO is a life-support system that acts as an artificial heart and lungs for patients with critical, life-threatening conditions.
The patient was brought to Joseftal by Magen David Adom paramedics after having been found unconscious, with resuscitation efforts underway.
When she arrived at the hospital, she was transferred to an intensive care unit, but her condition deteriorated due to respiratory instability. The on-call anesthesiologist from Soroka, who was at Joseftal, contacted the head of ECMO at Soroka, and it was decided to connect her to the life-saving system and transfer her immediately.
A military helicopter was dispatched to Soroka, and all required equipment was loaded on board. A team from Soroka's internal intensive care unit boarded the helicopter, flew to Joseftal, carried out complex procedures required to connect the woman to the device, and transported her by helicopter to Beersheba.
Senior Soroka, Joseftal doctors comment on successful transfer operation
"This is a woman in severe medical condition and in life-threatening danger due to severe lung injury. After the team at Joseftal identified that this was a severe lung injury that was not improving with mechanical ventilation, an inquiry was made to Soroka, and it was decided that, due to her severe respiratory condition, it was essential to connect her to ECMO and transfer her by helicopter rather than by ground transport," Dr Ori Galante, director of Soroka's internal intensive care unit, and head of the ECMO program said.
"Patients connected to an ECMO machine are in a condition in which their lungs do not function at all, and their lives depend on the device. Any transfer of a patient in such a condition is extremely complex. Thanks to the cooperation with the Air Force, the helicopter transfer was completed successfully. The patient’s condition is still very severe," Galante noted.
"I thank the excellent team from Soroka and the Air Force for their assistance in saving the woman’s life. Her condition is improving, and I hope she will soon return to full health," Josefthal director Dr. Yaffa Ashur added.