When treating

a seriously injured patient, paramedics know time is of the essence to

get them to a trauma level hospital.

That's why

Fayette County paramedics sometimes call for a medical helicopter to transport

critically wounded patients. The service from Rescue Air 1, for example,

can get a patient to a hospital in downtown Atlanta from anywhere in Fayette

in less than 15 minutes from takeoff to landing.

Accomplishing

that goal takes a seamless transition between on-the-ground paramedics

and the airborne medical staff, according to officials.

Fayette paramedics

and Rescue Air 1 staff participated in a combined drill last week to go

over procedures in preparing patients for air transport.

The main goal

is to improve safety for patients by presenting medical personnel with

various scenarios that they'll have to handle, said Allen McCullough,

assistant chief for the Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency

Services.

"They

usually get some of our worst cases," McCullough said, noting that

some patients are too severely injured to be taken to Fayette Community

Hospital.

Pam Robertson,

program director for Rescue Air 1, said it helps to have the ground-based

paramedics train with the airborne medical staff.

Airborne medical

treatment differs from that given in the back of the ambulance on a routine

ground trip to the hospital, Robertson said.

"It's

a much more confined space to work in," Robertson said, noting that

ground paramedics have to take some special measures to prepare a patient

for air transport.

That includes

making sure there's a safe landing zone near the scene, McCullough noted.

Loading the

patient into the helicopter can present challenges for medics as they

must take care to avoid the chopper's blades, McCullough noted.