On Friday, April 24, at the request of the prefectural authorities, a 47-year-old man suffering from Covid-19 and placed on respiratory assistance at the Pointe-à-pitre university hospital center in Guadeloupe (CHUG) was rushed to the center University hospital of Fort-de-France in Martinique (CHUM) by an army PUMA helicopter on board the amphibious helicopter carrier (PHA) Diksmuide.
At 12 noon, the Antilles zone prefect requisitions, via the Antilles zone interministerial staff (EMIZA), the superior commander of the armed forces in the Antilles to help transport patients in a serious condition suffering from covid-19. The state of health of this 47-year-old man, currently hospitalized at the CHUG, requires his care by the CHUM, the only hospital in the Antilles to have oxygenation skills under the body membrane (ECMO procedure). This type of evacuation is regularly performed between the CHUG and the CHUM, but this is the first time that it has been performed for the benefit of a covid-19 patient.
The Army's PUMA helicopter, positioned on the PHA Diksmuide, is the most suitable for this mission. It is in fact specially equipped for the transport of covid-19 patients thanks to its large carrying capacity. At 14:50 p.m., he takes off from PHA Diksmuide, which is in the waters of the island of Saint-Martin, and heads for the CHUG.
The patient's condition requires special care, so, in parallel, the Dragon 972 helicopter, the EC 145 of civil security takes off from Fort de France to take charge, at the CHUM, of a medical team and specialized equipment . A surgeon, an ECMO doctor and a nurse anesthetist, with their equipment, are essential to transport the patient.
At 15 p.m., the Dragon 30 lands at CHUG. Doctors and equipment are disembarked to prepare the patient for transport under the ECMO procedure. Twenty minutes later, the PUMA lands at the Raizet international airport in Guadeloupe to refuel and reconfigure itself, removing the additional tanks, in order to receive the patient and the civilian medical team for this exceptional transport.
Three hours later, at 18 p.m., the patient is ready for transport. The PUMA takes him on board in less than 30 minutes and leaves the CHUG in the direction of the CHUM, with the patient on board under ECMO and the CHUM medical team for a flight lasting one hour. The configuration of the PUMA helicopter has been specially designed to transport covid-10 patients, with a total seal between the piloting area and the place of reception of the patient and the carers.
The patient and the medical team join the CHUM at 19:40 p.m. and, after a technical stopover for refueling at the State Aeronautical Pole (PAE) in Lamentin, then a stop at Guadeloupe airport to collect their equipment left on the outward journey, the PUMA helicopter joins the PHA Diksmuide. It will be fully disinfected in less than three hours by a team of specialists from the 2nd Dragoon Regiment (RD) on board the helicopter carrier, in order to be operational again for a future mission for the benefit of the people of the Antilles.
The responsiveness of the entire operational chain and the coordination between the various state actors made it possible to transport the patient quickly and safely.
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