New Ambulance for Iowa Specialty Hospitals

Clarion and Belmond’s Iowa Specialty Hospitals recently added a new ambulance to their force. This smaller, sleeker, and safety-feature loaded model, called a Sprinter, is housed in Clarion, and is designated to assist with patient transfers. It is, however, fully equipped to deal with medical emergencies.

Brian Jensen, ambulance leader at Iowa Specialty Hospitals, pointed out the medical equipment that is housed in the ambulance, including a defibrillator, IV and first aid supplies, various medicine packs, and on-board oxygen. “Basically, it’s a rolling emergency room,” Jensen said.

The hospitals’ three other ambulances hold this sort of equipment as well, but the new ambulance also has some features that promote safe driving, like alarms that alert the driver of vehicles in the ambulance’s blind spots, alerts when driving too close to another vehicle, and a camera for backing up. Though there’s less room for extra emergency medical technicians or paramedics in the back, it is taller, allowing for more comfortable standing. Jensen also showed how a seat in the back could be converted to a bed for an extra patient.

For the full story, see the October 1 edition of the Monitor.