Click here to go to NETS home pageMedical Retrieval



Definition Medical retrieval is the process of transferring critically ill patients using a team which travels to the patient location from a central location or the destination hospital. The principles of medical retrieval are to:
  • assist in triaging and local treatment of the clinical problem.
  • send to the place of referral a level of medical expertise akin to that of the destination hospital.
  • assess the clinical problem in the place of referral.
  • stabilise the patient's condition using intensive care therapies prior to transportation.
  • transport the patient with physiological support and monitoring appropriate to their condition.
  • provide uninterrupted surveillance and care from 'bed-to-bed'.
  • be able to deal with forseeable en route deteriorations as competently as the working environment allows.
  • monitor and review the quality of the process.
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