Ambulance crew performs 12-minute transfer of critically ill patient

According to the report, the critically ill patient with an artificial lung is a 28-year-old teacher from Beijing's Huairou district and a mother of two.

Reporters learned the patient's condition was critical, and that she had an artificial lung — creating a high-risk journey to the hospital. Beijing Emergency Medical Center said to maintain patients' vital signs Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation devices, also known as "artificial lung", would be used throughout the transfer process. To save transit time, the airport expressway's Beigao entrance was chosen.

According to relevant experts, carrying ECMO equipment for long-distance transfer of a critically ill patient is a life-or-death test for both doctors and patient. Once a critically ill patient leaves the hospital, he or she has left the best treatment conditions. If the patient's life is in danger, first-aid personnel have to carry out emergency rescue in the ambulance, which is very dangerous.

At about 10:42 on Monday, the ambulance in charge of the transfer arrived at China-Japan Friendship Hospital, led by police cars. The hospital had installed security measures at the west gate to provide smooth passage for the ambulance. After entering the hospital, doctors and security guards stopped passers-by in front of the door and quickly transferred the patient to the ward. Starting from Beijing Ditan Hospital at 10:30, the journey took only 12 minutes.

According to the patient's doctor in the ambulance, all departments began to prepare for the transfer mission starting the day before, and the medical equipment was fully prepared on the ambulance. Due to early spread of the traffic information through media, along with traffic management departments leading the way, the transfer went very smoothly.