Quebec tests out helicopter ambulance service

Quebec is testing out a helicopter service that will be able to quickly transport trauma victims to hospital from rural areas.

Health Minister Gaétan Barrette announced an 18-month pilot project involving two helicopters on Friday.

Montreal's Sacré-Coeur Hospital, at the north end of the island, will be able to receive patients from six facilities in the Mauricie, Lanaudière and the Laurentians. 

The helicopters will not, however, transport patients directly from the site of an accident during the pilot project stage. They will have to be transported to a hospital first, but that could change in the future, Barrette said.

The province is partnering with Airmedic, a private company, on the project, which begins in September.

​Barrette said the testing period would allow the Health Ministry to ensure the system fits Quebec's needs. The annual budget is estimated at $3 million.

He expects about 175 patients to be transported per year during the trial.

The announcement came a day after Barrette was embroiled in controversy for comments Indigenous leaders criticized as racist.

Quebec doctors have been calling for a comprehensive air ambulance service for years. Those calls grew louder after the deadly Humboldt Broncos bus crash in Saskatchewan on April 6.

​Quebec is one of the only provinces in Canada without an organized, pre-hospital emergency air ambulance system, which could save lives if a tragedy were to happen in a rural part of the province.

There are three fixed wing air ambulance planes that are linked to the provincial health network but, until now, no helicopters.

Earlier this year, Dr. David Mulder, a renowned Montreal trauma specialist, said he believes an air ambulance service could not only reduce the trauma-related mortality rates, but also assist in cases of complicated obstetrics and cardiac cases and neonatal care.

Barrette said Friday Mulder was influential in getting the pilot project launched.