Published: Less than 10 min ago
The drones that deliver defibrillators in the Västra Götaland region now have another job: filming accident scenes.
– Via the drones, we have an opportunity to be on site before the healthcare staff are there, says Magnus Kristiansson, who is behind the project.
Since 2021, a project has been underway in the Västra Götaland region where drones deliver defibrillators in the event of cardiac arrest. More than 80 sharp flights have been carried out, and preliminary results show that the drones arrive before the ambulance in just over 60 percent of the cases.
Now the same drones, a total of five, will also be sent out to, among other things, traffic accidents and fires.
– It will be a support for the alarm operator, partly to be able to position where exactly an event has taken place but also to see the surroundings. Is the traffic at a standstill, are there many people at the site, is there a fire? says Magnus Kristiansson, innovation leader at the Innovation Platform in the region.
– We have never had that opportunity before, but you have had to base all decisions on phone calls, on what you hear.
Cardiac arrest is prioritized
A test phase of the project began at the end of last year, and will continue in early 2023. The drone photographs and films 60 meters up in the air, which means that it is not possible to see the faces or personal characteristics of people. No images or recordings are saved after the event has ended.
– If this turns out well and we see continued potential, we will try to get drones with better image capacity and which can handle more weather situations. But in the first stage there is a test period of a couple of months, says Magnus Kristiansson.
At the same time that the drones go out and film accident scenes, they carry their defibrillators with them. Should a cardiac arrest be alerted, it is prioritized, and the drone is then re-directed.
“Unique”
Similar studies with drones and defibrillators are ongoing in other places, but according to Magnus Kristiansson, the Västra Götaland region is the only region that now has it in operation – and that is developing the area of use for the drones further.
– As a healthcare organization, I think we are quite unique in the world in having implemented autonomous drones in sharp operation. I don’t know anyone else who has it, he says.
Facts
Västra Götaland region’s drones
In 2021, a project started in VGR where five drones can deliver defibrillators in case of cardiac arrest. The same drones must now also be used in other types of accidents or emergency events.
Since the project was started, more than 80 sharp flights have been carried out. In around 60 percent of cases, drones arrive before an ambulance, with a time gain of 4–5 minutes.
The drones start from Torslanda, Kungälv, Fiskebäck, Trollhättan and Vänersborg and can fly about 1.2 miles in total before the battery runs out. This means that they reach approximately 10 percent of the region’s inhabitants.
The first study for the project was started in the summer of 2020 by the Karolinska Institute in collaboration with SOS Alarm, the Västra Götaland region and the drone operator Everdrone. Then twelve drones were sent out with defibrillators in the region. A similar project was launched in Östersund in April 2022.
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