A Day in the Life of a NM Flight Paramedic During COVID-19

Abstract

Since COVID-19 has impacted the United States ambulance services have been in high demand and the air medical system has been increasingly overtaxed.1 Small community hospitals and clinics are constantly requesting flight crews to fly patients who they do not have space for, or cannot adequately care for due to the higher than normal patient volume.1,2 Due to the influx of patients statewide, these patients are then quickly shuffled to a larger hospital where they face even longer treatment times and faster discharges.1,2

This commentary will follow the work of a critical care flight paramedic in New Mexico during the COVID19 pandemic.