GOLDEN HOUR AWARD For distinguished and outstanding service utilizing helicopters in air medical transport
David Ellis Executive Director, Haiti Air Ambulance, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
When charity air medical transport service Haiti Air Ambulance (HAA) was founded in 2014 as Haiti’s only helicopter air ambulance provider, David Ellis was one of the first flight paramedics to volunteer. Volunteering for 10 to 14 days at a time, he supported the HAA team’s tireless work with various hospitals and medical teams to improve both the quality of and access to lifesaving and life-changing care. In 2020, Ellis took over the helm of the service as executive director,
ushering in a significant change in the way HAA approaches which patients are transported by helicopter. He shifted away from the traditional US helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) guidelines related to injury severity or threat to life. Instead, he focused on reasons specific to Haiti’s land-transport challenges: a grossly underequipped and understaffed national ambulance service, gas shortages, impassable roads, and rampant gang violence and roadblocks. “Te US’s stringent patient-carrying criteria just don’t work here,” Ellis says.
“People can’t [always] get to medical services, and their injuries can become life-threatening if not treated. Our service is for a funded charity, so we look at how we can affect as many lives as possible with that funding. Sometimes, it’s bringing patients to medical services; sometimes, it’s bringing vital medical supplies and professionals to the people.” Ellis’s philosophy has led to two significant results: an exponential increase
David Ellis
in the number of flights for the service and a monumental improvement in transport times. Since its inception, HAA has transported more than 1,500
patients, all during daylight VFR conditions. An impressive 53% of those were transported in the past two years since Ellis took the helm. HAA transported more than 500 patients in 2022 alone. Ellis has also been instrumental in developing relationships with
local doctors, hospitals, charities, and service providers. Most of HAA’s staff are Haitian, including several doctors he hired who provide vital direction and insight to HAA for operations in the country, helping Ellis direct a service that meets the extended needs of Haiti’s population. For instance, many medical facilities in the country lack several basics.
Ellis ushered in a
significant change in the way HAA approaches
Some don’t have a permanent roof, others have only a doctor or two with no nursing support, and virtually none have cafeterias or prepared food for patients. With the understanding that a patient will need a support person in the hospital to care for and feed them, Ellis arranged for HAA to transport a family member or friend with every patient. Haiti is also experiencing a steep increase in gang activity and unrest. In addition to
patient transport, shifting the focus from injury severity to Haiti’s
land-transport challenges.
arranging for HAA to carry more patients to avoid the violence, Ellis has taken steps to protect his team, hiring armored cars and security services to ensure that vital airlift work isn’t interrupted. Under Ellis’s leadership, HAA is growing. A second Bell 407 was scheduled to arrive in- country in early 2023, potentially doubling HAA’s impact in the impoverished nation.
Sponsored by
48 ROTOR MARCH 2023
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