Table 3.

Checklist of Patient Preparation

Head injuries

• Careful positioning of patient to avoid rise in intra cranial pressure (ICP)

• Use of eye pads/ointment/artificial tears in unconscious patient

Maxillofacial injuries

• Quick release mechanism for wired jaws or easy access to wire cutters

Chest injuries

• Ensure functional status of inter costal drainage (ICD) tube

• Never clamp in flight

Abdominal injuries

• Ensure all drainage tubes are unclamped or on continuous suction

Orthopaedic injuries

• Avoid use of pneumatic splints

• Ensure optimal stability of the fracture segments

Haemorrhagic shock

• Ensure minimum haemoglobin of 7.0 gm/dl

• Likely to have increased IV fluid requirements in flight

• Availability of pressure bags

Burn injuries

• Ensure escharotomies for full thickness circumferential burns

Airway management

• Use saline for filling cuff of endotracheal/tracheostomy tube

• Use tube fixator for endotracheal tube

• Supplemental oxygen to maintain saturation > 90%

Liaison with aircrew

• Cabin altitude

• Weather en-route