JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Reservists with the 315th Airlift Wing here were part of
a team to test a new system for transporting patients
suffering from Ebola, Acute Respiratory Syndrome and other contagious conditions
aboard C-17 Globemaster III aircraft.
The rapidly developed Transportation
Isolation System comes on the heels of last year's Ebola outbreak in Western
Africa. The TIS is designed to provide aeromedical evacuation for patients with
known or suspected exposure to a contagious and infectious disease and to
protect aircraft, aircrew and support personnel. It provides worldwide patient
transport capability in case of a biological event.
The training and
testing of the TIS was unlike anything Pamela Evanosky, 315th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron aeromedical technician, had experienced before. "Its
capabilities and what it can provide for our troops and Department of Defense
members is something I feel we have needed for a very, very long
time."
Evanosky is no stranger to infectious patients while on
aeromedical missions. She deployed to Japan as a reservist during the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome crisis several years ago. "If we had the
capabilities of the TIS back then, I think the transport of any patient
regardless of illness or disease would have been no problem at all and would
have occurred in the safest environment possible."
"After receiving the
new training and being involved with the testing of the TIS, I am fully
confident and would step up to the plate anytime and anywhere to transport a
highly contagious patient regardless if it is either an airborne illness or an
Ebola patient," Evanosky said. "The reason for my self-confidence is that the
TIS will deliver, not only the capability to transport multiple patients, it
will also provide a negative pressure environment within the aircraft and the
'room' to provide safe medical care in flight regardless of the situation. I can
exit and enter the TIS when needed because it's been designed to allow me to do
so per the highest Centers for Disease Control standards and
regulations."
Evanosky said in the long run, she sees TIS capability as
a significant advantage for the aeromedical evacuation mission and, "will
certainly offset the specialized future challenges in assuring the proper care
is administered to those who are in need"
The TIS, manufactured by
Production Products, Inc. of St. Louis, is based on an existing military support
pallets. Each unit has a disposable liner supported by a metal structure and an
air filtration system. The TIS maintains negative interior pressure to keep
contaminants inside the chamber. An alarm sounds if negative pressure is
lost.
The TIS is a modular, buildable system capable of transporting up
to three litter patients or four ambulatory patients in each module. This
modular system allows for flexibility with various patient configurations; the
standard configuration is for two seats and one litter. A C-17 can carry three
full TIS units consisting of anteroom and two isolation modules. Each module is
about 9 by 7.5 feet, 8.5 feet tall and weighs less than 1,500
pounds.
According to U.S. Transportation Command, the Department of
Defense has ordered 25 systems with delivery expected in March 2015. Joint Base
Charleston has received the first two of the systems for training and staging.
Additional staging locations will be developed following delivery and based upon
ongoing world events.
Since DoD efforts in support of the Ebola outbreak
in Western Africa last year, 315th Airlift Wing aircrews have flown over a dozen
missions delivering over 200 personnel and 737.4 short tons of cargo to the
region. To date, the Air Force has not transported any patients suspected of
having Ebola from the region.
More information about TIS can be found on
U.S. Transportation Command's web site: http://www.transcom.mil/news/print_news.cfm?id=9202