Utah Admin. Code R911-10-16 - Medical Operations Policies and Procedures

(1) An air ambulance provider shall have a detailed manual of policies and procedures available for reference in the flight coordination office and available for department inspection to assist with EMS system planning and resource coordination efforts.

(2) An air ambulance provider's personnel shall be familiar and comply with policies contained within the manual, which shall include:

(a) procedures for acceptance of requests, referrals, and denial of service for medically related reasons;

(b) a written description of the geographical boundaries and features for the service area;

(c) a copy of the service area map;

(d) scheduled hours of operation;

(e) criteria for the medical conditions and indications or medical contraindications for flight;

(f) medical communication procedures, including:

(i) medically related dispatch protocol;

(ii) call verification; and

(iii) advisories to the requesting entity to include procedures for informing the requesting entity of flight procedures, anticipated time of aircraft patient arrival, or cancelation of flight;

(g) criteria regarding acceptable destinations based upon medical needs of the patient;

(h) non-aviation safety procedures for medical crew assignments and notification, including rosters of medical personnel;

(i) written policy that ensures air medical personnel may not be assigned or assume cockpit duties concurrent with patient care duties and responsibilities;

(j) written policy that directs air ambulance personnel to honor a patient request for a specific service or destination when the circumstances will not jeopardize patient safety;

(k) medical communications procedures;

(l) flight cancelation and referral procedures;

(m) mutual aid procedures;

(n) a written plan that addresses the actions to be taken in the event of an emergency, diversion, or patient crisis during transport operations;

(o) patient tracking procedures that shall ensure air and ground position reports at intervals not to exceed 15 minutes in-flight and 45 minutes after landing;

(p) policy for delineating methods of maintaining medical communications during power outages and in disaster situations; and

(q) written procedures governing the air ambulance provider's medical complaint resolution process and protocols.

(3)

(a) At a minimum, the air ambulance provider shall designate personnel responsible for its dispute resolution process and provide protocols it shall follow when investigating, tracking, documenting, reviewing, and resolving the complaint.

(b) The air ambulance provider's complaint resolution procedures shall emphasize resolution of complaints and problems within a specified period.

Notes

Utah Admin. Code R911-10-16

Adopted by Utah State Bulletin Number 2024-14, effective 7/1/2024