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Bautzen (dpa / sn) - First use with EpiShuttle in Saxony: DRF Luftrettung has equipped the rescue helicopter "Christoph 62" at its station in Bautzen with an insulating stretcher for the safe and faster transport of corona infected people.

As Florian Reifferscheid, emergency doctor for the air rescue service, said at the handover on Wednesday, patients with highly contagious diseases could be transported in the EpiShuttle like in an isolation ward.

“The person lies under a transparent cover, can be connected to an intensive care ventilator via airtight access and can be monitored and treated at the same time.

We fly patients to a clinic quickly, safely and with the best possible supervision, ”he explained.

In addition, the crews are even better protected from infection than before.

The Bautzen EpiShuttle is the first flying DRF isolation station in the Free State.

After training the staff on site, it is planned that the helicopter with the new high-tech box will be used immediately.

Thanks to the EpiShuttle, Christoph 62 should be ready to take off again sooner after a flight with corona patients, as time is saved for cleaning the helicopter.

After conventional flights with infected people, the ambulance had to be disinfected for a good two hours, the EpiShuttle is ready to fly again after a good half an hour.

Due to the tense situation due to the high number of infections in Saxony, the DRF stationed a second rescue helicopter in Bautzen on December 23rd.

So far, the DRF colleagues at the Saxon station have flown over 50 missions in connection with Covid since the pandemic began in spring 2020.

This primarily involves transports from clinics in the Bautzen and Görlitz districts to clinics across Germany, including Rostock, Lübeck and Göttingen.

According to Reifferscheid, the entire DRF fleet flew 660 missions related to Covid during this time.

Mostly it concerns the transfer of patients to hospitals further away.

So far, the air rescue organization has equipped a total of 12 of 29 DRF Luftrettung stations in Germany with an EpiShuttle.

The costs per flying intensive box are around 40,000 euros.

With around 570 emergency doctors, 120 paramedics, 170 pilots and 130 technicians and over 50 helicopters, the DRF helps people in need every day.

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DRF air rescue