October 11, 2022 | By: Marty Barnes
Categories: Diagnosis & Health Care
Transportation is just one of many things to consider when you have a child with complex medical needs.
The term medical transport means needing an ambulance for non-emergency transport. Many children on ventilators may require transport to support the equipment they need safely. Some children are not able to sit up and need to stay on a stretcher. There are dozens of reasons why a person may need medical transport.
As a nurse, many of my patients’ families rely on medical transport whenever their child must leave the house. What does this mean? This means there are no spontaneous trips to the movies. This means siblings cannot tag along.
Families who rely on medical transport must set up the ride at least a day in advance. If there are other small children at home, they must plan for childcare. Families often need to match their schedule to the availability of the transport team.
Before the COVID emergency, medical transport was not too bad. People knew to call the day before and the ride would show up within 30 minutes of the pickup time. If the appointment was for more than an hour, transport would leave. The family would then call when they were done and knew the transport would be back in 30-45 minutes to pick them up.
Since the COVID emergency, arranging for medical transport has changed. Just like all other fields, a lot of the workforce left. There is a more involved process around sterilizing the ambulance between patients. There is a higher need for non-emergency transports.
Some of my patients arrive at the clinic already stressed from the uncomfortable ride. Then they are at the clinic for many hours. Many times over the past year the usual pickup window became 3-6 hours of waiting.
Patients are stranded at the clinic, unable to do anything about it. If the parents had hoped to get home in time to pick up a sibling from school - this may not happen, so they often need to call and make other plans. If the patient needs to be given medication or fed, their family must decide how and what to do.
Families of children with medical complexity have a lot to juggle. The stress of coordinating and relying on transport is just one more thing.
Use this site search for information on Medical Transportation.
Healthcare decisions should be based on the needs of patients, not their age. Pediatric patients are treated based on their size. The right dose of medicine is determined using their height and weight. Equipment is sized for their safety and comfort.
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