Medical evacuation

Medical evacuation, often called medevac or medivac, is the quick and careful movement of patients who need special care during transport. This can be done using air ambulances, helicopters, ground ambulances, or even ships. Medical teams travel with the patients to give care along the way.

This kind of help is used in many situations. It includes civilian emergency medical service vehicles, private helicopter services for medical flights, and military air ambulances. It also means moving patients from places like battlefields to hospitals or from one hospital to another that has better equipment and staff to help them.

History

The first time people were moved by airplane for medical help was in Serbia in 1915 during the First World War. One of the sick soldiers was Milan Rastislav Štefánik, a Slovak pilot, who was flown to safety by a French pilot named Louis Paulhan.

Later, during World War II, the United States Army used helicopters to save people in Burma. The first helicopter rescue was done by a pilot named Carter Harman. He flew many trips to help rescue an American pilot and some injured British soldiers.