Coast Guard Performs First Landing at Virginia Hospital's Rooftop Pad
The MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter's crew and hospital personnel participated in the training to practice safely transferring patients from the aircraft to the emergency department.
A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew performed the first landing at one of Sentara Norfolk General Hospital's new helicopter landing pads on April 10. The hospital has recently built two new rooftop helicopter landing pads in order to quickly move patients to needed care.
The Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City-based MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew performed the first landing on the larger pad, which is 269 feet off the ground, above any obstacles.
The crew and hospital personnel participated in the training to practice safely transferring patients from the aircraft to the emergency department. "The new pad will help us streamline patient care from the Coast Guard team to the Sentara team," said Denise Baylous, program manager of the Nightingale Regional Air Ambulance at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.
Hospital officials expect that the pad designed to accommodate military helicopters will be ready for full operation in May 2019. Sentara Norfolk General Hospital is one of just five Level 1 trauma centers in Virginia and is home to the Nightingale Regional Air Ambulance system.