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Staff for Life helicopter service celebrates 25th anniversary The Staff for Life Helicopter Service at University Hospital is celebrating its 25th anniversary as mid-Missouri’s first air ambulance provider of rapid immediate medical care and transportation to critically ill and injured patients. Since its first flight in November of 1982, more than 26,000 accident-free patient missions have been flown, saving the lives of thousands of Missourians. A reception marking the anniversary and honoring the Staff for Life team was held Nov. 28 in the main lobby of University Hospital. “We’ve had 25 great years of caring for patients in mid-Missouri,” said Leeann Johnson, R.N., chief flight nurse for the Staff for Life. “We’ve transported thousands of patients and we have a lot of friends out there. We are really proud of this milestone.” The Staff for Life helicopter service was established through the efforts of Frank Mitchell, M.D., then director of University Hospital’s Emergency Services. Mitchell initiated a pilot study that concluded patient outcomes were greatly improved with rapid transport from rural accident scenes to a hospital. When the Staff for Life helicopter service went into operation, it became the 54th air medical program in the United States and only the third in Missouri. “The helicopter service would not have existed without the incredible leadership of Frank Mitchell,” said Leeann Johnson, R.N., chief flight nurse for the Staff for Life. “Dr. Mitchell had a vision for improving the emergency care of mid-Missourians, and he’s been a champion of the Staff for Life team since day one.” Each year, the Staff for Life team responds to more than 1,000 emergency calls and patient transport requests. On board each flight, are a flight nurse, flight paramedic and pilot. The highly-skilled team is on call 24-hours a day, seven days a week at three bases strategically located in central Missouri. Helicopters are stationed at University Hospital in Columbia, at Lake Regional Hospital in Osage Beach and west of Sedalia in La Monte, Mo. “The helicopter is everything from a highly skilled ambulance crew to a state-of-the-art intensive care unit,” said John Yanos, M.D., University of Missouri Health Care physician and chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the MU School of Medicine. “We have the capacity to handle everything from newborns to the elderly, with the ability to tailor our services to specific injuries and problems.” A specialized Children’s Hospital transport team, consisting of a critical care nurse, respiratory therapist and pilot, is responsible for neonatal and interfacility pediatric medical patient transportation. Premature or ill babies are flown from rural outlying hospitals to receive specialized care at Children’s Hospital’s Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Pediatric Unit, Adolescent Unit or Pediatric ICU. The helicopter program is owned and operated by Air Methods Corporation of Englewood, Colo., the nation’s largest provider of air medical emergency transport services and systems, in collaboration with University Hospital. Patsy Lewellen, R.N., a former chief flight nurse for the Staff for Life helicopter service and now Air Methods program director, believes the relationship between Air Methods and University of Missouri Health Care combines the best of both worlds. “With Air Methods’ 27 years of experience in the air medical industry and the resources of University of Missouri Health Care, patients are guaranteed the highest quality of care and transportation,” said Lewellen. University of Missouri Health Care’s system of hospitals, clinics and telehealth sites employs approximately 6,000 clinicians, scientists, educators and other health professionals. The system includes University Hospital and Clinics, Children’s Hospital, Columbia Regional Hospital, Ellis Fischel Cancer Center and University Physicians, all based in Columbia, Mo. The health system also includes a long-term acute care facility, Missouri Rehabilitation Center, in Mount Vernon, Mo. Academic affiliates of the health system include the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Medicine, Sinclair School of Nursing and School of Health Professions. Other affiliates of the health system include Rusk Rehabilitation Center in Columbia, Mo.; Capital Region Medical Center in Jefferson City, Mo., and Cooper County Memorial Hospital in Boonville, Mo. |
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