Chicago's First Hospital Based Air Ambulance

The University of Chicago Aeromedical Network (UCAN) began operations on December 6, 1983. UCAN was developed by the Department of Emergency Medicine to offer improved access to highly specialized care for the acutely ill and injured through accident scene responses and interhospital transfers. The system utilizes a sophisticated Aerospatiale twin turbine helicopter which carries specialized life support equipment This is the fastest and arguably safest commercial helicopter available. Equipment for obstetrics, neonatology, pediatrics, spinal cord injuries, burns, cardiology, and trauma care is available. The aircraft is based full time on a specially constructed helipad located on the roof of the Bernard Mitchell Hospital, allowing rapid access to the Emergency Department, Intensive Care Tower, and surgical suites. The flight crew consists of a specially trained flight nurse, an emergency medicine physician, and the pilot. As a flight physician, the resident will be exposed to a fascinating spectrum of experiences ranging from scene responses to the stabilization of critically ill in-patients prior to helicopter transport. In preparation for being flight physicians, residents receive advanced instruction in field resuscitation, aviation medicine, extrication, and aircraft safety. During the residency one gains an in-depth knowledge of aeromedical system operations.

The Network's Capabilities
UCAN flies within a 200-mile radius of Chicago, connecting community hospitals with the many tertiary care facilities and medical resources of this region. For greater distances UCAN arranges medically staffed and equipped air transport by airplane. The twin-engine Dauphin 2 helicopter flies at speeds up to 180 miles per hour and is capable of transporting two patients and a medical crew of three. The customized aircraft configuration, medical equipment and personnel enable UCAN to manage all aspects of aeromedical transport.

Medically equpped as an Advanced Life Support air ambulance, UCAN has aditional sophisticated medical equipment on board to meet the needs of each critical patient. Click here to explore inside the helicopter. (please use scroll bar to see the 360 degree photo)

The following specialized equipment is also available:

• Cardiac Pacemaker
• Central Lines
• Chest Tubes
• Intra-aortic balloon pump
• Invasive and Non-invasive blood pressure monitors
• IV infusion pumps
• Neonatal isolette
• Pulse Oximetry
• Ventilation equipment for newborns, infants, children, and adults

Making Contact The UCAN team can be summoned by physicians and hospital staff or by authorized industrial and public safety personnel such as police officers, fire fighters, paramedics and other emergency medical personnel. Our Communication Center (773-702-3222) is answered by trained aeromedical communication specialists 24 hours a day.

The EMS Experience
Prehospital care is the special province of emergency medicine and our department offers a superb experience in this area. The University of Chicago Medical Center is one of four hospitals that govern the Chicago City-Wide Mobile Intensive Care System, one of the busiest Emergency Medical Services (EMS) systems in the United States. The Chicago South Mobile Intensive Care System, which encompasses the entire southern half of the city, is under the auspices of the Section of Emergency Medicine at the University of Chicago.

Residents participate directly in the EMS system. They are responsible for directing, via telemetry radio, all of the ambulance runs in this huge system. They are assisted in the actual communication by Mobile Intensive Care trained nurses and by telemetry-trained personnel at our two associate resource hospitals. Their experiences include a telemetry course, riding on the ambulances, and participating as on site physicians or evaluators in disaster drills for the entire city. The EMS curriculum is extensive and includes a review of the administrative aspects of emergency medical systems. The resident will have the opportunity to work with directors of various EMS systems, including a rural system, as an integral aspect of the EMS module which is completed during the Administrative Chief experience in the final year of training.