It’s a Bird. It’s a Plane. It’s a Medical Response Drone.
KFF Health News July 30, 2024
What if the first responder on the scene of a cardiac arrest were a drone carrying an automated external defibrillator?
When every second counts, public safety professionals are increasingly eyeing drones — which can fly 60 miles an hour and don’t get stuck in traffic — to deliver help faster than an ambulance or EMT.
Starting in September, 911 callers in Clemmons, N.C., may see a drone winging its way to those suffering a cardiac arrest. Under a pilot program operated jointly by the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, local emergency services, the Clinical Research Institute at Duke University and drone consulting firm Hovecon, drone pilots from the sheriff’s department will monitor 911 calls and dispatch drones.
The sheriff’s office has...