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FIGURE 11.8 An example of “Welcome Pamphlet” given to families of transport patients of The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (Used with permission, © The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA.) Regardless of their degree of involvement, physicians should be aware of the air medical transport resources and capacities in their region Two basic types of air transport exist: RW helicopter and FW aircraft RW aircraft are common in both rural and urban EMS systems, are typically hospital based, and usually carry a nurse, respiratory therapist, or physician as one (or more) of their crew members, while some services have a paramedic (EMT-P) as a primary crew member The unique capabilities of rapid, direct scene response give the RW craft a distinct advantage over FW aircraft and ground units in some cases Helicopter EMS (HEMS) have allowed for the provision of ALS services to larger rural areas incapable of sustaining independent ALS units, and have provided access to tertiary care centers for patients in regions without such centers In both rural and crowded metro and suburban areas, RW aircraft offers the benefit of time saved in transit—a significant benefit in cases such as trauma and surgical emergencies However, recent research has suggested that direct air transport from an accident scene to a trauma center for pediatric patients may not improve survival when compared with local hospital stabilization prior to air transfer Moreover, Engbrecht et al noted that interfacility transport of patients by RW aircraft was generally not predictive of need for acute intervention in their study population,