Emergency communications services

Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service emergency communications coordinates delivery of the following services:

  • Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service ground ambulance, an advanced life support ground ambulance, from locations in Minnesota and western Wisconsin
  • Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service air ambulance helicopter, the emergency medical helicopters based in Rochester and Mankato, Minnesota, and Eau Claire, Wisconsin
  • Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service air ambulance airplane, a turboprop based in Rochester, Minnesota, that flies throughout the country and into portions of Canada
  • Neonatal and pediatric specialty team transports by air and ground, as determined by patient age and condition

Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service emergency communications uses a computer-aided dispatch system. Dispatchers activate the field staff via radio and alphanumeric paging and communicate through a vehicle-installed mobile data transfer system. Emergency communications can monitor the location of all Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service units throughout the call process.

Other services

Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service also provides other emergency communication services, including:

  • 911 pre-arrival emergency care instructions. Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service emergency communications serves as a public safety answering point for seven counties in Minnesota. It provides emergency care instructions to callers before ambulance arrival using an evidenced-based, internationally recognized protocol. The pre-arrival instructions cover a wide variety of emergency conditions, from childbirth to CPR.
  • Incoming ground and air ambulance patient reports. Ambulance and medical aircraft crews radio emergency communications with status reports on patients coming to Mayo Clinic Hospital, Saint Marys Campus and Mayo Clinic Hospital, Methodist Campus in Rochester, Minnesota. Emergency medical dispatchers can quickly link them to an emergency room consultant when necessary. Emergency communications also uses these reports to activate emergency department resuscitation, trauma care, cardiac catheterization and stroke care teams.
  • Flight following. The emergency medical dispatchers maintain contact with dispatched emergency medical helicopters to help ensure that they meet industry and federal safety standards.

Accreditation

Mayo Clinic's emergency communications is accredited by the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED). The IAED is a nonprofit standard-setting organization promoting safe and effective emergency dispatch services worldwide.