Mayo One Helicopter to Base at Chippewa Valley Regional Airport

Friday, November 09, 2007

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Mayo Clinic is relocating the base for the Mayo One helicopter serving west-central Wisconsin. The Eau Claire-region base for Mayo One, which serves a 200-mile radius and more than 700 patients each year, will operate from Chippewa Valley Regional Airport, starting November 12.

"While our base will move two minutes to the north, our commitment to trauma and medical patients in the region will not change," states Dan Hankins, M.D, an emergency medicine physician and medical director for Mayo One. "We have been serving patients in the Eau Claire, Chippewa Valley and west-central Wisconsin region for nearly 15 years and our commitment remains the same — the needs of our patients come first."

According to Dr. Hankins, the move from the Luther Midelfort campus to Chippewa Valley Regional Airport will not affect service to patients or the medical providers, first responders and agencies served. Dr. Hankins adds, "There are great resources at the airport and we look forward to working with the airport commission," says Dr. Hankins. "This location allows space for the program to grow and continue to make enhancements, allowing us to serve patients with the highest level of care in the safest, most efficient means possible."

Mayo One first began looking at the possibility of relocating to Chippewa Valley Regional Airport in early 2006 and has been working with the Chippewa Valley Regional Airport Commission on needs to make the move possible. The move was formally approved by the commission earlier this year.

"We are extremely pleased to have the Mayo One medical transport helicopter move to the airport," says Charity Speich, spokesperson for Chippewa Valley Regional Airport. "Mayo One will have access to features that make the airport a safe and efficient location for a medical helicopter including support from air traffic control, up-to-the-minute weather information and precision approach capability."

The new Mayo One base will include onsite office and living quarters for Mayo One staff and a newly renovated hangar for the aircraft. Costs for the installation of the space for crews and renovations to the hangar were paid by Mayo One and were not the result of any local, state or federal subsidies or taxes. "Our mission is to support the needs of patients and residents in the region. We are a not-for-profit program and wanted to ensure that if we moved the helicopter base that it would not affect our medical response or have a negative financial impact in the form of taxes or subsidies on residents," says Dr. Hankins.

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Special Note to Media: The Mayo One helicopter will be landing at the Chippewa Valley Regional Airport at approximately 3 p.m., Monday, Nov. 12.

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