Officials at UF Health Jacksonville have announced the expansion of UF Health TraumaOne, Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia’s only adult and pediatric Level I trauma program, with the unveiling of two new critical care ground transport vehicles.
UF Health Jacksonville and Century Ambulance Service will provide the equipment and crew to operate the vehicles under the guidance of TraumaOne Flight Services.
This new service is specifically designed to assist with expediting critically ill and injured patients who are being transferred from accident scenes and other facilities directly to UF Health Jacksonville’s trauma center or cardiac, neurological and advanced intensive care units. In some cases, helicopter services are limited due to weather or location, making ground transportation more effective.
“TraumaOne is undoubtedly a leader in lifesaving care, and this new service further expands what UF Health Jacksonville can provide to the community,” said Leon L. Haley Jr., M.D., MHSA, CEO of UF Health Jacksonville and dean of the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville. “Our collaboration with Century Ambulance is another vital resource for treating critically ill and injured patients.”
One of the new ambulances will be the largest such vehicle in the city. Century Ambulance has outfitted both vehicles with equipment specifically designed to treat the most critically ill patients. The ambulances will be housed at UF Health Jacksonville. In addition, TraumaOne has three helicopters stationed strategically in Yulee, Lake City and St. Augustine for fast response to any accident scene or emergency room.
“For decades, Century Ambulance has built a strong relationship with UF Health and TraumaOne to provide exceptional patient care. The new cutting-edge ambulances are large enough to transport two patients and the trauma care team and allow for transmitting information back to the hospital while on location and en route, all of which leads to better patient outcomes,” said Matt Johnson, general manager of Century Ambulance and vice president of Operations East, Covalent Health.
UF Health Jacksonville is also hoping to expand the new service to include ECMO treatment. ECMO, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, is an advanced form of life support that helps treat patients with the most severe heart and lung conditions, allowing the organs to rest while the machine pumps and oxygenates a patient’s blood outside of the body.