Surman K, Lockey D. Unmanned aerial vehicles and pre-hospital emergency medicine.
Scand J Trauma Resusc Emerg Med 2024;
32:9. [PMID:
38287437 PMCID:
PMC10826110 DOI:
10.1186/s13049-024-01180-7]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024] Open
Abstract
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are used in many industrial and commercial roles and have an increasing number of medical applications. This article reviews the characteristics of UAVs and their current applications in pre-hospital emergency medicine. The key roles are transport of equipment and medications and potentially passengers to or from a scene and the use of cameras to observe or communicate with remote scenes. The potential hazards of UAVs both deliberate or accidental are also discussed.
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