The three helicopters of the company “Moldaeroservice”, which are being converted into sanitary helicopters, will serve each by one of the three areas of the country – the south, center and north. They will transport persons in a critical condition to the closest hospital. Director of the National Emergency Medicine Center of Chisinau Gheorghe Ciobanu said the helicopters will start work in the first quarter of this year. It is projected that 250 persons will be transported annually by them, IPN reports.
According to Gheorghe Ciobanu, at the initial stage there will be used only the three adjusted helicopters. Afterward. “Moldaeroservice” will purchase a modern sanitary helicopter, like those that are widely used in the European Union. The Ministry of Health will be responsible for employing medical personnel, while “Moldaeroservice” will cover the costs for maintaining the helicopters and remunerating the pilots. The equipment of one sanitary helicopter of “Moldaeroservice” costs about 500,000 lei.
“When sanitary aviation starts to be used, there will be no non-transportable persons as the transportation time will be very short, while the effects on the patient will be minimal. The sanitary helicopters will intervene within a distance of minimum 25 km, while the transportation time will be at most 15 minutes,” said Gheorghe Ciobanu. The helicopters will be able to land on the territory of any district hospital. Special landing platforms are now being set up or the old, Soviet ones are being renovated.
Gheorghe Ciobanu said the sanitary aviation project of Moldova does not run counter to the partnership established with Romania within the Joint Operational Program Romania-Ukraine – Republic of Moldova 2007-2013. The partnership with Romania is financed by the European community and envisions the extension of the Romanian service SMURD into Moldova to provide emergency assistance in the crossborder area, on both banks of the Prut River.
