Could county do without helicopter?

Could county do without helicopter?

Fewer choppers a possibility; Norwood remains unstaffed
An expert panel last week called on Maryland to review its medevac program, which could lead to a smaller helicopter fleet with fewer flights at a time when Montgomery County still lacks a helicopter at the Maryland State Police hangar in Norwood.

Without its helicopter, named Trooper 8, Montgomery County has had to change its fire and rescue strategies, Interim Fire Chief Richard Bowers said.

"It has the potential to have an impact on our citizens through the potential for longer transport times," Bowers said. "Trooper 8 is in service for a reason. There is a need."

The experts, convened in the wake of a September crash, stopped short of suggesting how many helicopters Maryland should have or detailing new emergency medicine protocols that could reduce flights from accidents to trauma centers.

"That's not something a group of guys spending eight hours in Maryland can do," said Dr. John A. Morris, a panel member who is director of the LifeFlight Patient Care Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville.

Before the crash, Maryland had a 12-helicopter fleet to serve eight bases around the state. On a foggy Sept. 27, four died and a helicopter was destroyed when it was called to transport two teenagers from automobile wreck in Waldorf to Prince George's Hospital Center.

The lone survivor, 18-year-old Jordan Wells of Waldorf, left a Baltimore hospital last week and asked the state to find what's wrong and fix the helicopters.

Of the 11 remaining helicopters, four are grounded for maintenance. With only seven flying, one base must go unstaffed. That has been Norwood, because officials believe the county can be covered by a helicopters stationed in Frederick and Andrews Air Force Base, as well as a U.S. Park Police helicopter, stationed at Anacostia Park in the District of Columbia.

State police are working toward having all eight of the helicopter stations staffed, spokesman Greg Shipley said.

The seven-member panel received about four hours of testimony last week, then huddled privately to issue its recommendations.

The experts suggested that state police change the flight rules, which would mean the helicopters would fly less in bad weather.

Maj. Andrew J. McAndrew, commander of the state police aviation division, said many of those rules already are in place.

To fully comply would require more record keeping, with a ballpark cost of $500,000, he said.

The panel also suggested the medevac program be accredited with the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems. That would mean the helicopters would fly with two paramedics, instead of one, which is the current practice.

The possibility of fewer helicopters comes as the state is trying to move forward with a $110 million program to replace some of its older choppers. Several are 19 years old.

Money was set aside during the 2007 special session to pay for new helicopters, before budget figures showed the state facing a $1.2 billion budget shortfall.

Del. William A. Bronrott, who serves on the House Appropriations Committee, said no one region, particularly the state's most populous county, should be disproportionately affected by helicopter decisions.

On the possibility of reducing the helicopter fleet, Bronrott (D-Dist. 16) of Bethesda said, "There's no evidence that I have seen that this is a system that is broken."

Shipley said Tuesday that he would not speculate on whether the Norwood base would remain unstaffed if the state chooses to fly only seven helicopters permanently.

That's a decision that would be made by McAndrew, in conjunction with Dr. Robert Bass, the director of the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems, and the Statewide EMS Advisory board.

"There are a lot of people involved in that decision, and it has not been discussed," Shipley said.