Tampa General Hospital unveiled what they’re calling the nation’s first EMS-driven drone delivery system for pre-hospital whole blood delivery. Time between injury and transfusion will shrink.
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue helped build this. So did University of South Florida Health Morsani College of Medicine, Florida Center for Emergency Medical Services, OneBlood, and Archer First Response System’s emergency drone logistics infrastructure. A 911 call comes in. Severe blood loss is reported. Dispatch sends emergency responders while a drone equipped with whole blood launches toward the scene.
Two drone systems will cover a combined 70-square-mile area. Blood arrives at the scene in under three minutes on average. First responders can start transfusions right there, before the patient ever sees a hospital.
“As Florida’s premiere academic health system and a world-class Level I trauma center, Tampa General offers patients in crisis the best chances at the best possible outcome. But we refuse to settle for the status quo, which is why we invest in the latest technologies and pursue innovative solutions to reach patients faster with the equipment and care they need,” said John Couris, president and CEO of Tampa General | Florida Health Sciences Center, per PRNewswire.
Michele Moran, senior vice president for emergency services at the medical center, said the system shifts the crucial window to the scene. “The golden hour of trauma care has always started at the hospital door until now. This program puts whole blood directly into the hands of first responders before a patient ever reaches us, moving that critical window to the scene of the emergency itself,” Moran said.
Chief Todd Carnell, rescue division chief of Hillsborough County Fire Rescue, said crews gain a new weapon against death. “Our crews are often first at the scene of an accident. This program puts an essential, lifesaving resource directly in our hands at the scene, giving our first responders more tools to improve the chances of survival of a patient in crisis,” Carnell said.
Two fire rescue stations will receive the technology: Station 9 in the Faulkenburg/Sabal Park area and Station 37 in Riverview. These stations serve the parts of the county with the most penetrating trauma and hemorrhagic injuries.
The technology should come online in October 2026, pending approval by the Hillsborough County Commission. The Board of County Commissioners meets about this on Sept. 2.