DRF Luftrettung rescue helicopters carrying blood and plasma
The DRF Luftrettung air ambulance helicopter stationed in Mannheim is now carrying blood and plasma supplies onboard, ensuring the rapid availability of such products to emergency patients suffering from severe blood loss.
Dr Jörg Braun, Head of Medicine at DRF Luftrettung, commented on why the non-profit organisation made the move: “Because of their speed, our helicopters are often the first to rescue people with serious injuries.” The Mannheim crew is the second DRF crew to carry blood and plasma onboard, having followed in the footsteps of the crew based in Greifswald.
DRF Luftrettung has developed the procedure for the transport and storage of blood and plasma products in co-operation with the DRK Blood Transfusion Service Baden-Württemberg-Hessen and the University Clinics of Mannheim and Greifswald. The influence of the special storage and transport conditions in the helicopter on the coagulation factor and the quality of the blood components was scientifically investigated in numerous tests.
Prof. Dr Harald Klüter, Medical Director of the Institute of Transfusion Medicine and Immunology, explained that all blood carried is O Rhesus negative, as ‘this rare blood type is particularly well suited for use in emergency medicine’.
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