CREW CAPABILITY EVALUATION FOR HELICOPTER EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE OPERATIONS - ISSUES CHALLENGES

摘要

Successful Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) operations are dependent on a synergistic performance of the software, hardware and liveware (crew) components of the air ambulance system. Mission accomplishment requires pre-mission analysis of the performance expectations of these components under the environmental conditions imposed for the operation. Pre-mission analysis of the liveware component requires knowledge of crew performance within HEMS, particularly which crew attributes, in what degree, contribute to mission accomplishment. Crew knowledge, experience levels, physical fitness and mental robustness are examples of attributes that supplement the technological, operational and environmental demands in mission accomplishment. In this research crew attributes are investigated to identify its relative contribution in mission accomplishment. The scope of the research is the holisitic analysis of all crew attributes that contribute to mission accomplishment. The study encompasses the identification of the crew attributes, followed by an analysis of the interrelationship of the attributes in mission accomplishment. The results of the analysis will be used to prioritise the attributes in quantitative terms, for relative ranking of their importance in mission contribution. The ranking provides critical inputs required for pre-mission analysis of HEMS. In this research project (presently under progress) a system methodology for the analysis of crew attributes that contribute to mission accomplishment is being investigated. The methodology will enable the attributes to be quantified in accordance with their relative importance; and the integration of the attributes will provide an estimation of the crew mission capabilities. In this paper the base-line methodology developed previously, is investigated in detail to enable more precise classification of crew attributes and a more accurate estimation of crew capability in mission accomplishment.