The City of Calgary introduced a modified ambulance to its fleet to accommodate patients weighing between 400 and 1,000 pounds. The "bariatric response team" aims to make moving morbidly obese patients safer for paramedics and more dignified for the patient.
The alarming number of obese patients has presented challenges for responders. On some occasions patients had to be moved in truck beds, which is unsafe and humiliating. The number of morbidly obese people in Canada has quadrupled since 1985, according to the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
The new ambulance is equipped with special air-bags and hydraulic lifts to help ease the patient into the vehicle.
Why This Trend Is Growing
- Specialized Ambulance Services
- The development of specialized ambulances for specific patient populations, such as morbidly obese individuals, presents an opportunity for disruptive innovation in the healthcare industry.
- Bariatric Response Teams
- The creation of bariatric response teams dedicated to assisting and providing dignified care for morbidly obese patients has the potential to disrupt traditional emergency medical services.
- Technology for Patient Transfer
- The use of advanced technology, such as hydraulic lifts and special air-bags, in ambulances to facilitate safer and more comfortable transportation of morbidly obese patients represents a disruptive innovation opportunity in the medical transportation sector.
Industries Being Reshaped
- Healthcare
- The healthcare industry can benefit from adopting specialized ambulance services and bariatric response teams to cater to the needs of morbidly obese patients.
- Emergency Medical Services
- The creation of bariatric response teams and the implementation of technology for patient transfer in ambulances can disrupt the traditional emergency medical services industry by offering improved care for morbidly obese patients.
- Medical Transportation
- The development of specialized ambulances equipped with innovative technology for patient transfer presents a disruptive innovation opportunity in the medical transportation industry, particularly for serving the needs of morbidly obese individuals.
