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Roberts NB, Ager E, Leith T, Lott I, Mason-Maready M, Nix T, Gottula A, Hunt N, Brent C. Current summary of the evidence in drone-based emergency medical services care. Resusc Plus 2023; 13:100347. [PMID: 36654723 PMCID: PMC9841214 DOI: 10.1016/j.resplu.2022.100347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Revised: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Interventions for many medical emergencies including cardiac arrests, strokes, drug overdoses, seizures, and trauma, are critically time-dependent, with faster intervention leading to improved patient outcomes. Consequently, a major focus of emergency medical services (EMS) systems and prehospital medicine has been improving the time until medical intervention in these time-sensitive emergencies, often by reducing the time required to deliver critical medical supplies to the scene of the emergency. Medical indications for using unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, are rapidly expanding, including the delivery of time-sensitive medical supplies. To date, the drone-based delivery of a variety of time-critical medical supplies has been evaluated, generating promising data suggesting that drones can improve the time interval to intervention through the rapid delivery of automatic external defibrillators (AEDs), naloxone, antiepileptics, and blood products. Furthermore, the improvement in the time until intervention offered by drones in out-of-hospital emergencies is likely to improve patient outcomes in time-dependent medical emergencies. However, barriers and knowledge gaps remain that must be addressed. Further research demonstrating functionality in real-world scenarios, as well as research that integrates drones into the existing EMS structure will be necessary before drones can reach their full potential. The primary aim of this review is to summarize the current evidence in drone-based Emergency Medical Services Care to help identify future research directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan B. Roberts
- University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA
- Corresponding authors at: Medical School, University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA.
| | - Emily Ager
- University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA
- Corresponding authors at: Medical School, University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA.
| | - Thomas Leith
- University of Michigan Medical School, 7300 Medical Science Building I—A Wing, 1301 Catherine St, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Isabel Lott
- University of Michigan Medical School, 7300 Medical Science Building I—A Wing, 1301 Catherine St, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Marlee Mason-Maready
- Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, 586 Pioneer Dr, Rochester, MI 48309, USA
| | - Tyler Nix
- University of Michigan, Taubman Health Sciences Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Adam Gottula
- University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA
- The University of Michigan, Department of Anesthesiology , University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 East Medical Center Dr. Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Nathaniel Hunt
- University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA
| | - Christine Brent
- University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA
- Corresponding authors at: Medical School, University of Michigan Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5305, USA.
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A Conceptual Approach to Time Savings and Cost Competitiveness Assessments for Drone Transport of Biologic Samples with Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones). DRONES 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/drones6030062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, drones) are expected to save transport time and improve service reliability for transport of biologic samples, but few studies have evaluated the potential time savings of such services. The total transport time defined as time from sample ready for transport until arrival at the laboratory was used to assess the absolute and relative time savings of drones compared with ground transport, using ground distances from 4–7 km (urban model) to 179–262 km (rural district routes) with one to eight daily scheduled trips. Costs of existing ground transport were allocated to drone flight times as a proxy for drone cost competitiveness. Time savings were less than 20–30% in the urban model but 65–74% in the rural routes using drone speeds of 100 km/h, but the time between trips (route frequencies) and drone speeds influenced the relative time savings substantially. Cost of time gains per number of samples was less favorable using drones in the rural models due to lower transport volumes. This research concludes that drone solutions provide marginal gains for short-distance transports, whereas time savings are more promising in long transport models with appropriate scheduling and sufficiently high drone speeds.
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