Registered as P2-KID, the new Bell 222 helicopter comes installed with a patient stretcher and clinical seat.
This dedicated emergency medical interior provides ample room for prehospital patient care.
Its cabin volume allows direct 360-degree access to patients in the event of emergencies, such as the need for resuscitations.
Manolos Aviation CEO Jurgen Ruh who flew the aircraft from Tasmania to Cairns, and then Cairns to PNG on Thursday November 10 2022, said the helicopter fulfills his vision of having a dedicated aircraft for medical evacuations only.
“The helicopter has a stretcher where you can rotate out of the helicopter cabin, strap in patients, and easily push back in,” he said.
“The clinical or nurse seat can swivel and slide, giving the nurse more access to the patient in flight,” Ruh said.
“The interior also has two extra seats for guardians or health workers who escort their patient to the hospital, and it has enough room for our portable medical equipment like oxygen cylinders, bags with medical supplies and many more.”
The helicopter was welcomed around 3:30pm in Lae at the Manolos Heliport. It is the second helicopter for Mountain Area Medical Airlift Foundation Ltd (MAMAFL), the first being P2-DAD, which was also flown in from Australia on May 23, 2022.
MAMAFL is a not-for-profit organization established in September 2020 to manage helicopter medical evacuation services. In 2021 alone, a total of 111 medical evacuations was done across Papua New Guinea.
Ruh thanked Trukai Industries Ltd who sponsored K100, 000 to MAMAFL in October this year: “it allowed for the medevac-configuration to happen while the helicopter was still in Australia.”
Pictures: manalosaviation.org
FM100 / PNG Health News
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