Generally speaking, Mississippi ranks pretty well when it comes to access to emergency health services, but for the most severe cases the options aren’t few; they are one.
University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson is the state’s only Level 1 Trauma Center. Each year, the hospital treats more than 70,000 critically-ill patients from all parts of the state. Because time is of the essence in critical-care, UMMC relies heavily on air ambulance service to significantly reduce the time before these patients receive the care that is only provided by UMMC.
Improvements to the hospital’s air ambulance service means better outcomes from patients throughout the state.
On Tuesday, the Starkville Board of Aldermen approved seeking grants to build a $1.5 million hangar at George M. Bryan Airport to be used primarily for UMMC’s air ambulance service. The hangar will give UMMC a base for serving emergency patients in the northeast part of the state.
The city will be applying for grants that include an Appalachian Regional Commission grant for more than $800,000 and a Mississippi Department of Transportation Grant for more than $490,000.
The city of Starkville, Oktibbeha County and Mississippi State University plan to match the grants for a total of about $150,000, which we believe is a good investment in more ways than one.
In addition to improving UMMC’s air ambulance logistics, it adds another dimension to the airport. As a public-owned, non-commercial airport, Bryan Airport is among the most diverse, not only serving personal aircraft, but Mississippi State as well, especially as home to the university’s Raspet Flight Research Laboratory. Respert’s 55,000-square-foot headquarters houses research staff, flight crew, aircraft assets, administrative and other offices, and all research and operational equipment.
A new hangar devoted to UMMC Air Ambulance service complements those existing services, further enhancing the airport’s role in the community.
In addition to air ambulance services, the hangar will be used for air evacuations during disaster and emergencies as well as a staging area for relief teams. The hangar will be recognized as part of UMMC’s Aircare and Disaster Response Operations. Disaster relief teams will include natural disaster response units trained to handle natural disaster issues like flooding, tornadoes and potentially icy weather.
There is also a direct economic benefit. The new facility will add around 20 highly skilled, trained and paid jobs to the Starkville area, including roles like aircraft mechanics and helicopter pilots.
Disaster relief teams will include natural disaster response units trained to handle natural disaster issues like flooding, tornadoes and potentially icy weather.
The new hangar checks a lot of boxes, both in terms of public health and the local economy.
We applaud the aldermen for pursuing this opportunity.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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