Drone Delivery Speeds up EMS Response
If you live in Manatee County, Florida, and you call EMS for assistance, your first contact with help may be a drone flying medical supplies to your door. This is because Manatee County and its EMS agency has teamed with Tampa General Hospital (TGH) and Archer First Response Systems (ArcherFRS) to deliver lifesaving equipment to eligible 9-1-1 callers.
“As of May 1 [2024], when an individual in the coverage area calls 9-1-1 with reports of cardiac arrest, opioid overdose or trauma, the Manatee County ECC Dispatch will initiate deployment of the ArcherFRS drone,” said Jason Swoboda, TGH’s director of innovation. “The equipment is expected to reach the caller between 1 minute 45 seconds and 2 minutes 10 seconds. Dispatch will walk the 9-1-1 caller through the application of the equipment needed while traditional emergency response vehicles are en route. The drone is managed through a collaborative effort from Tampa General and the Manatee County Public Safety team.”
TGH describes this program as being the first in the nation to use drones for delivering an AED, Narcan nasal spray, and a tourniquet directly to the public.
“According to the CDC, more than 350,000 people in the United States have an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest every year, and only 10% survive,” stated a TGH news release announcing the program. “Access to an [AED] can prevent death in some circumstances. [Meanwhile] the National Institute of Health reported more than 112,000 recorded fatalities from opioid related incidents in 2023. Narcan nasal spray is designed to rapidly reverse the effects of a life altering opioid emergency due to opioid overdose.”
Finally, “trauma is one of the leading causes of death in the United States, with the greatest impact on those under the age of 45 and adolescents,” Swoboda said. “One-quarter of uncontrolled hemorrhage related deaths in the United States are preventable with tools like applied pressure and tourniquets.”
Of course, not every drone has the carrying capacity and range to deliver medical supplies. But ArcherFRS’ Alta X drone certainly does. This rugged four-rotor drone can carry a payload of 22 lbs for 22 minutes, 11 lbs for 30 minutes, and 8 lbs for 35 minutes. (When not hauling cargo attached under its frame, the Alta X can fly 50 minutes.) To ease adoption for EMS agencies, ArcherFRS is offered to them as a turnkey 9-1-1-based EMS supply delivery system within a 35-square-mile coverage area in less than five minutes.
TGH and its partners decided to pioneer this drone-based EMS response to expand access to care from Tampa General, Swoboda said. “We're on a mission to implement new technology that saves lives,” he said. “There's a demonstrated need in our community for innovative solutions for emergency responses in complex situations. By making emergency equipment accessible in less time, we are able to improve patient outcomes. With rapid access to lifesaving equipment, individuals benefit from increased chances of survival and better health outcomes.”
Given this drone-based EMS response program has only been in operation since May of last year, it’s too soon to assess how effective this form of emergency response actually is. However, there is no doubt that it offers the chance to provide faster service to people needing EMS help; particularly in rural/remote areas where ambulance availability is low, and distances covered are long. Moreover, the integration of drones into EMS may attract a new source of volunteers into nonprofessional EMS agencies—specifically civilian drone pilots who otherwise wouldn’t be giving their time and expertise to local first responders.
Back at TGH, their focus is on what drone-based EMS can do for the residents of Manatee County. As such, “this program is an opportunity for us to evaluate the equipment, response times, and determine how it can be replicated in other areas or expanded to serve a broader region,” Swoboda said. “We look forward to sharing stories of how this equipment has positively impacted the region."
