Emergency response centre admits mistake in ambulance delay at airport

Finnair Tokyo flight causes confusion at dispatch centre

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The 40-minute delay in the arrival of an ambulance responding to an emergency on board a plane re-routed to Helsinki-Vantaa Airport on Wednesday resulted from human error at the emergency response centre.
      The ambulance had been called to meet an Austrian Airlines plane which made an unscheduled stop in Helsinki when a 91-year-old Japanese woman on board fell ill. The plane was en route from Tokyo to Vienna.
      During the wait, the patient’s condition deteriorated, and she died on board.
     
The plane requested permission for an emergency landing at 2:24 PM. Helsinki air traffic control immediately contacted the emergency response centre to report on the condition of the patient. At that point the exact location of the plane was not mentioned.
      Part of the confusion stems from the fact that a scheduled Finnair flight from Tokyo was landing at about the same time, and the dispatcher had the impression that the Finnair plane was involved in the call.
      “The airline was mentioned, but the mind of the dispatcher was fixed on Finnair”, said Tuomo Katajisto of the emergency response centre.
      When the air traffic control announced the location of the plane, the dispatcher trusted more in the information on the location of the Finnair plane. “After that there were many calls referring to the right location. In spite of that, it was assumed that it was the [Finnair] plane in any case.”
     
It was not understood that an unscheduled landing was involved. The ambulance was sent under the less-urgent C classification.
      Once the Austrian Airlines plane had landed, inquiries were made about the whereabouts of the ambulance. Helsingin Sanomat has learned that at this point, about 2:45 PM, the crew of the ambulance was looking for the patient on the wrong plane.
      “I have heard about that as well, but I cannot confirm it”, Katajisto said.
      Finally, the first to reach the spot was a unit of the dispatch organisation Medi-Heli, whose doctor pronounced the patient dead at 3:15.
      Katajisto says that the case will have an impact on procedures at the emergency response centre. “It would be good if air traffic control could, in the future, make sure that the ambulance dispatcher has the correct location. Nevertheless, we admit our mistake”, Katajisto said.
     
The rescue department operates under the authority of the Ministry of the Interior, and its medical transport services are monitored by health care officials.
      Hetti Kirves, who supervises emergency transport in the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District, is investigating the matter.
      “When a medical emergency landing is involved, this is an unfortunate event from the point of view of Finland”, Kirves notes.
      Kirves adds that there will also be an investigation into whether or not the delay in getting the ambulance to the right location contributed to the patient’s death.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Ambulance delayed; patient dies at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (6.8.2009)

Helsingin Sanomat