Speed More Important Than Limiting Movement When Freeing a Person From a Car Accident

 

It has previously been assumed by air ambulance crews and firefighters that the extraction of a person should concentrate on care over speed. Indeed, fire crews have been trained in movement minimisation since the 1980’s but this can be a time consuming method and can cost lives. 

 

1n 2021 there were 127,967 casualties and 1,560 deaths in England caused by motor vehicle collisions. Of these 7,000 patients needed to be assisted out of their vehicle through extraction, such as using tools to assist the extraction and then being carefully lifted out. 

 

However, Dr Tim Nutbeam, who is an NHS emergency medicine consultant and medical lead for the Devon Air Ambulance, has undertaken research which shows that delaying getting a patient out of a vehicle makes them twice as likely to die from their injuries as those who were freed quickly. 

 

The likelihood of spinal injuries to car accident patients who are trapped is very low at just 0.7% and in about half of those cases there were other serious injuries needing serious attention. Delays in cutting people free rather than spinal injuries are more likely to prove fatal in road traffic accidents. 

 

It is thought that this research will lead to changes in guidance.