Working Groups – EHAC – European HEMS & Air Ambulance Committee e.V.

ACRM working group

Aeromedical Crew Resource Management

ABOUT ACRM

History of Aeromedical CRM

Analysis in a number of industrial sectors (e.g.: aviation industry, nuclear power industry, petrochemical industry) have indicated that not the material or technical failure are the major causes, but up to 80% of accident causes can be attributed to human factors. Not only the technical skills like flying an aircraft or learning knowledge are important, but especially the non-technical skills (NTS) like communication, teamwork, leadership, situation awareness and decision-making.

These non-technical skills are building the content of the training program “Crew Resource Management (CRM)”, which is compulsory for pilots and crewmembers in HEMS.

TARGET GROUP

Target Group

The Target group of the Aeromedical CRM Training spreads over all professional groups who are involved in HEMS missions:

pilots
HEMS crewmember
emergency physician
maintenance staff

Aeromedical CRM desires an expansion of the target groups to other professions involved in HEMS other than the helicopter team:

headquarter and back-office staff in HEMS
hospital staff (e.g.: emergency room)
ground emergency service staff
air ambulance staff

The EHAC ACRM Working Group cooperation initially was designed for the German-speaking community. An expansion to the English-speaking community has been developed since 2008, initially introduced at the Hungarian HEMS company (Magyar Légimentő Nonprofit Kft.). So the training materials are also available in English. All organizations, that want to join the EHAC Aeromedical CRM Group are guided through a consultation process to reach the level of performance to implement the training program.

TRAINING

The Training Program

The defined contents will be imparted and compiled in theoretical and practical parts. The distribution of theory and practice orients towards knowledge of the participants and the consistence of the group. To reach and involve the participants, different methods are used: experiential educational tasks, group discussions, case based studies, video analysis, role plays, scenic graphs and other methods which are suited for the particular situations and topics.
With the aid of this diversity of methods the participants are able to learn how to solve difficult and complex working situations together.

Here are some main points:

Support of teambuilding processes
Development of a common language
Development of a common goal
Sensitizations of individual expectations in the team
Providing clarification of procedures and processes in the team
Changing the perspective between self-perception and external perception
Sensitizations and refurbishment of cultural differences
Development of skills, how to use all available resources in the team

Big focus is on case based studies in HEMS situations. Based on these real life situations, the training content is teached and discussed.
Thus, the direct connection to the relevance shall be made for the own workaday life.

The group of participants at the Aeromedical CRM training should consist to equal parts of all professions in the HEMS team (pilot, emergency physician, HEMS crewmember). In addition, there will be a mix of participants and trainers among the European HEMS operators.

The trainer team is put together by at least two trainers from different professional groups, whereas at least one of these two must be an approved CRM trainer by the national aviation authority. There is an existing European trainer pool for Aeromedical CRM trainings. So trainer exchange is possible and supported.

The working group has compiled a training syllabus and a standard catalogue for Aeromedical CRM trainings, which is valid as a minimal requirement for trainings to be acknowledged by EHAC.

WORKING GROUP & TRAINER POOL

Tasks

At least twice a year, the EHAC working group meetings take place to plan and coordinate the activities and share experiences. The tasks of the Aeromedical CRM working group are manifold and contain for example:

Planning and Performance of Aeromedical CRM training, as well as education and training for trainers
improvement of the Aeromedical CRM training concept
Preparations from legal determinations in connection with Aeromedical CRM
Development of standards
Cooperation with other EHAC working groups
Consultation of new partners

With the creation of a European “EHAC virtual training centre” the organizational conditions shall be created to tackle these tasks and to pull forward the Aeromedical CRM program.

Members

Members of the Aeromedical CRM Working Group

Bo Conneryd (Norsk Luftamulanse AS, NOR)
Michael Hochhäuser (ADAC Luftrettung GmbH, GER)
Marian Kuklica (Air Transport Europe (ATE), SVK)
Bernd Lang (OEAMTC Air Rescue, AUT)
Wouter van Leeuwen (ANWB Medical Air Assistance, NED)
Till Linder (Swiss Air-Rescue (Rega), CHE)
Michał Sobczyk (Lotnicze Pogotowie Ratunkowe (LPR), POL)
Péter Temesvári (Hungarian Air Ambulance, HUN)
Satu Yliherne (FinnHEMS, FIN)
dr. Andrea Válint (TrustAir, HUN)

Aeromedical CRM Trainers

Every EHAC ACRM partner organization has a pool of trained ACRM trainers to conduct the required human factors training needed in their organization and within our network.

CONTACT ACRM

Medical working group

ABOUT MEDICAL WORKING GROUP

EHAC, as an umbrella organization above the member HEMS and air ambulance providers, aims to improve the quality of medical care and enhance the efficacy and safety of prehospital care.

Full members participate in the works of the MWG through their medical representatives, but from time to time there are also external experts invited from certain areas to contribute with their experience. MWG participates in the organization of the annual EHAC Symposium and the AirMed World Congress, held every 3 years.

The Medical Working Group understands that different countries have different levels of competencies, and providers and programs might have different crews, but the goal is common: to provide the highest possible level and maximum safety to our patients, regardless of the crew composition. Thus, we don’t prepare protocols but compare best practices, discuss the pros and cons of certain procedures and share experiences not just amongst the members, but also provide external support for non-member countries, and operators. The common goal is to discuss old routines, assess some newly introduced methods and recommend best practices.

Flight Ops and Flight Safety working group

ABOUT FLIGHT OPS AND FLIGHT SAFETY

The Flight Operations WG (WG OPS) serves EHAC member organisations to exchange flight operations issues in order to improve flight safety, but also efficiency and effectiveness of HEMS operations in Europe through a continuous constructive critical dialogue. In addition, EHAC also makes this invaluable experience of member organisations available to the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for amendments to EU aviation regulations.

HEMS operations take place at locations such as residential areas, motorways, forests or even in high alpine environments. By their very nature, these locations are not foreseen for aviation operations and, consequently, are not equipped with the appropriate safety infrastructure and services, unlike aerodromes. In addition, there is a clear need for HEMS missions around the clock and in bad weather conditions for medical reasons. This means that HEMS missions generally place high demands on the crews and operators to ensure that they are carried out safely.

Experienced chief pilots, flight OPS managers and crew members work hand in hand in the EHAC WG OPS to shape a safe and sustainable future for HEMS and air-rescue operations. In this way, they not only make an important contribution to flight safety but also, and in particular, to ensure that the European population has access to modern pre-hospital emergency medicine