Omniflight Helicopters
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OMNIFLIGHT HELICOPTERS, INC. INCORPORATES NEWEST PORTABLE VENTILATOR TECHNOLOGY INTO ITS AIRCRAFT FLEET

Most advanced, State-of-the-art Ventilator Technology to be Introduced in Every Omniflight Aircraft over Next 18 Months

Addison, Texas … October 22, 2009 …. … Omniflight Helicopters, Inc., a leading national provider of air medical services, announced today that it has implemented an initiative to add new portable ventilators to all its aircraft in an effort that will begin in October 2009 and is expected to be completed by April 2011.  Omniflight is the first civilian air medical services operator to introduce the portable ventilator across its fleet of more than 100 aircraft nationally.

Features of the new state-of-the-art Impact Instrumentation, Inc, EMV+ Portable Ventilators to be used by Omniflight include:

  • Real time altitude compensation – ensures that the patient receives consistent ventilation, thereby improving potential oxygenation.
  • Air worthiness -- AWR is the most stringent standard for medical equipment.  The device must pass a multitude of tests including operating temperature, altitude compensation, and affect on any of the aircraft instruments.
  • Ventilator screen – Offers better viewing and is compatible with night vision goggles, a fairly new technology which aids in enhancing night sight as well as viewing in direct sunlight.
  • Advanced monitoring - Integrated on-screen patient monitoring of oxygen saturation and heart rate.
  • Enhanced power – 10-hour battery life with two-hour charge time compared with current industry standard of 1-4-hour battery life.

The EMV+ Portable Ventilator is manufactured by New Jersey-based Impact Instrumentation, Inc. a medical device developer and manufacturer of respiratory products and measuring instrumentation and is being supplied to Omniflight by Progressive Medical International (PMI), a Vista, Calif.-based supplier of medical equipment and emergency care supplies. 

Rick Rambo, vice president of clinical services at Omniflight, commented on the new ventilator roll-out, stating:  “At Omniflight, we are always striving to provide the latest in medical technology in our quest to deliver the highest levels of quality patient care.  We work closely with our team, vendors and customers on an ongoing basis to ensure we are providing the safest and most compassionate clinical care to the communities we serve.  We achieve these high standards of quality and excellence by incorporating the latest technologies, the most current educational tools and training platform and continuous process improvement.  These ventilators are yet another example of Omniflight’s commitment to continually enhancing patient care and providing the highest quality care in the air.” 

“As the first air medical services provider to introduce this technology, we are demonstrating first-hand not only our unrelenting commitment to excellence in patient care but also our ability to remain on the cutting edge of air medical technology.  We look forward to improving the care of patients we transport with the addition of these new ventilators,” Rambo concluded.

About Omniflight
Addison, Texas-based Omniflight Helicopters, Inc. is a leading provider of air medical services throughout the U.S.  The company operates more than 100 aircraft nationally from 72 bases in 18 states, with a strong presence across the Southwest, Midwest and Southeast regions as well as certain Mountain State areas.  Its focus is primarily on inter-facility transports and on-site emergency scene response using both rotor- and fixed-wing aircraft.  For more information, please visit www.omniflight.com.