HEMS dispatch: A systematic review:

IntroductionHelicopter emergency medical services dispatch is a contentious issue in modern prehospital services. Whilst the link between helicopter emergency medical services and improved patient outcome is well evidenced, allocation to the most appropriate incidents remains problematic. It is unclear which model of deployment is the most efficient at targeting major trauma and whether this can be improved with a change in dispatch process. The objective of this study was to have an overview of the evidence for dispatch models of helicopter emergency medical services to critically ill or injured patients.MethodsThis systematic review was conducted in accordance with a protocol developed from the PRISMA guidelines. MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL and the Cochrane library were searched focusing on keywords involving dispatch of helicopter emergency medical services resources.ResultsNinety-seven articles were screened and 14 articles were eligible for inclusion. Most were of low quality, with three of moderate qual...