Operational Policies and Procedures for Critical Care Transport During a Respiratory Pandemic.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic of 2020 to 2021 created unprecedented challenges for health care organizations, including those in the critical care transport sector. Critical care transport services had to rapidly adjust to changing patient demographics, distribution of diagnoses, and transport utilization stratagem. To evolve with the pandemic, organizations developed new protocols and guidelines in rapid succession.

Clinical Policies and Procedures for Critical Care Transport during a Respiratory Pandemic.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus disease-2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic of 2020-2021 created unprecedented challenges for clinicians in critical care transport (CCT). These CCT services had to rapidly adjust their clinical approaches to evolving patient demographics, a preponderance of respiratory failure, and transport utilization stratagem. Organizations had to develop and implement new protocols and guidelines in rapid succession, often without the education and training that would have been involved pre-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Transport of a Nonintubated Prone Patient with Severe Hypoxemic Respiratory Failure Due to COVID-19.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare systems have been facing an unprecedented, large-scale respiratory disaster. Prone positioning improves mortality in severe hypoxemic respiratory failure, including COVID-19. While this is effective for intubated patients with moderate-to-severe ARDS, it has also been shown to be beneficial for non-intubated patients.

Delays in the Air or Ground Transfer of Patients for Endovascular Thrombectomy.

Background And Purpose: For suspected large vessel occlusion patients efficient transfer to centers that provide endovascular therapy (ET) is critical to maximizing treatment opportunity. Our objective was to examine associations between transfer time, modes of transfer, ET, and outcomes within a hub-and-spoke telestroke network.

Methods: Patients with ischemic stroke were included if transferred to a single hub hospital between January 2011 and October 2015 with National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale>6, onset<12 hours from hub arrival with complete clinical, imaging, and transfer data.