Patient & Visitor
MEDCOM
Hospital Wing

"Trauma admission by air in ten minutes." This announcement, signaling the arrival of Hospital Wing (the patient transport helicopter for the Regional Medical Center at Memphis – The MED), has been heard over 2,000 times at the The MED’s Trauma Center. Trauma flights by helicopter to The MED constitute 40 to 50 percent of all transports by Hospital Wing.

Staffed with two experienced critical care nurses and one pilot, Hospital Wing can take off within three to five minutes. Flight crews communicate with the trauma physicians throughout transport. This vital link thru MEDCOM allows the flight team to perform many advanced procedures in flight to further stabilize the trauma patient. Currently 85 to 90 percent of the trauma transports to The MED by Hospital Wing are inter-facility transfers. Hospital Wing maximizes the "golden hour" for the trauma patient. The “golden hour” is said to be the first 60 minutes after the occurrence of major multi-system trauma. The victim's chances of survival are reputed to be greatest if he or she can be in the operating room within that hour.

Hospital Wing was one of the first collaborative ventures in the country between hospitals: Baptist Memorial Hospital, Methodist, The MED, and LeBonheur. It’s been a life-saving collaboration.

Quick Links