tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Disaster Med Public Health Prep
. 2023 Sep 5;17:e480.
doi: 10.1017/dmp.2023.145. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 and Medical Evacuation in Lombardy: Lessons Learned from an Unprecedented Pandemic
Riccardo Stucchi[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Alba Ripoll-Gallardo[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Giuseppe Maria Sechi[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Eric S Weinstein[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Guido Francesco Villa[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Cristina Frigerio[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Federico Federighi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Giacomo Grasselli[SUP] 6 7 [/SUP], Alberto Zoli[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Rodolfo Bonora[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Roberto Fumagalli[SUP] 8 9 [/SUP]; AREU Crisis Unit
Affiliations
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerging infectious disease pandemic developed in Lombardy (northern Italy) during the last week of February 2020 with a progressive increase of patients presenting with serious clinical findings. Despite the efforts of the Central Italian Government, regional resources were rapidly at capacity. The solution was to plan the medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) of 119 critically ill patients (median age 61 years) to in-patient intensive care units in other Italian regions (77) and Germany (42). Once surviving patients were deemed suitable, the repatriation process concluded the assignment. The aim of this report is to underline the importance of a rapid organization and coordination process between different nodes of an effective national and international network during an emerging infectious disease outbreak and draw lessons learned from similar published reports.
Keywords: COVID-19; community health planning; decision-making; medical evacuation; surge capacity building.
. 2023 Sep 5;17:e480.
doi: 10.1017/dmp.2023.145. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 and Medical Evacuation in Lombardy: Lessons Learned from an Unprecedented Pandemic
Riccardo Stucchi[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Alba Ripoll-Gallardo[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Giuseppe Maria Sechi[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Eric S Weinstein[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Guido Francesco Villa[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Cristina Frigerio[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Federico Federighi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Giacomo Grasselli[SUP] 6 7 [/SUP], Alberto Zoli[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Rodolfo Bonora[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Roberto Fumagalli[SUP] 8 9 [/SUP]; AREU Crisis Unit
Affiliations
- PMID: 37667885
- DOI: 10.1017/dmp.2023.145
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerging infectious disease pandemic developed in Lombardy (northern Italy) during the last week of February 2020 with a progressive increase of patients presenting with serious clinical findings. Despite the efforts of the Central Italian Government, regional resources were rapidly at capacity. The solution was to plan the medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) of 119 critically ill patients (median age 61 years) to in-patient intensive care units in other Italian regions (77) and Germany (42). Once surviving patients were deemed suitable, the repatriation process concluded the assignment. The aim of this report is to underline the importance of a rapid organization and coordination process between different nodes of an effective national and international network during an emerging infectious disease outbreak and draw lessons learned from similar published reports.
Keywords: COVID-19; community health planning; decision-making; medical evacuation; surge capacity building.