Advanced Support Air Service in Minas Gerais gives wings to the right to health

With 586,528 km² of territorial area, Minas Gerais has an extension similar to that of countries such as France, Spain or Ukraine. With this information in mind, it is possible to ask how to guarantee the transfer of patients in an adequate time if they need to travel long distances.

The answer is given by the Advanced Support Air Service (SAAV), which is the result of a partnership between the State Department of Health (SES-MG), the Minas Gerais Military Fire Brigade (CBMMG), the State Aviation Command (Comave) and the Mobile Emergency Care Service (Samu), through the Regional Health Consortia.

In healthcare systems like the United States, this type of care is provided privately. Thanks to the SUS, which is organized based on the principles of universality and equity, a high-cost service is available to anyone who needs it, as a right.

This was what happened, for example, on the last weekend of April, in Divinópolis. On that occasion, the Air Operations Battalion (BOA) of the Minas Gerais Fire Department responded to cases of people who were admitted to an Emergency Care Unit (UPA) and required transfer due to their serious health situation.

Following a request from the Regulation Directorate of the State Department of Health, the air team took action to transport patients in serious condition so that they could access hospital services that were more appropriate to the critical situation they were facing.

Captain Candeias, commander of the Battalion’s fixed-wing aircraft, reports that one of these cases for transport occurred on Saturday afternoon (27/4), when a two-year-old child, suffering from autism and suffering from dengue fever, needed be transferred to the Sagrada Família University Hospital of Araguari.

“The landing had to be carried out at the Uberlândia aerodrome, considering that the Araguari aerodrome was closed by the National Civil Aviation Agency. From Uberlândia, the child was taken to Araguari by land, with support from Cistri, which is the Public Intermunicipal Health Consortium of the Urgency and Emergency Network of the Northern Triangle Macroregion”, he details.

On Sunday morning, two patients, an 11-month-old girl, with breathing difficulties, and a three-year-old boy, with pneumonia, were transferred from Divinópolis to Uberlândia, also destined for Araguari Hospital.

“The air transport in this case is extremely important, considering that our state has dimensions comparable to those of European countries and, due to the urgency that the case required and the distance between the municipalities, it was the most appropriate and quick way to transport children.”, he comments.

The number of patients transported has grown, from 344 in 2016 to 1007 last year. The number of victims treated also jumped from 428, in 2016, to 1276 in 2023.

“Considering only the two transfers of the three children, converting into flight hours to establish a cost, it is possible to say that the value would be R$ 16,250 for the entire mission”, points out Captain Candeias. This reinforces the idea that only a universal public policy could guarantee access to such a specialized service.

Saav has specialized medical teams in Belo Horizonte, Montes Claros, Varginha and Uberaba, ensuring a quick and efficient response in medical emergency situations.

“The air operations battalion has specialized medical teams that make up our air ICU. Generally, two aircraft commanders and two fixed-wing and rotary-wing co-pilots enter each day. There are also tactical aero operators who perform functions both within the aircraft and in logistical support for routine demands. In addition, we also have two medical teams, each composed of a doctor and a nurse, who man the aircraft for pre-hospital and inter-hospital care.”.

“When there is a request, we initially receive, by email, all the documentation relating to the air transport request, made by SUSFácil. The medical team on duty, in possession of all documentation, carries out the screening, contacting the hospitals of origin and destination to check the availability of space and evaluates the patient’s clinical conditions to ensure that he or she has the ability to travel by air. . Next, logistical support conditions are checked so that the medical team can be taken from the airport to the hospital. Finally, after the patient has stabilized, it is possible to travel to the airport”, details the CBMMG Captain.

Saav currently has six helicopters and two planes and, considering the ground transport carried out by Samu 192, coverage reaches 93% of the state territory.

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