1.3 Medical Director

Each service must be under proper direction and guidance of a medical director who must be a suitably qualified physician for the general mission statement of the organisation. The Medical Director must have a position with medical executive powers in the organisation structure, with major input into formulating and updating the organisation's medical mission statement.

The Director must:

• Be registered in the state(s) in which his service is sited.
• Be experienced in the type of care the service provides.
• Have a specialist qualification consistent with the mission statement of the service.
• If the service is a critical care organisation, the director must have recognised specialist qualifications in Emergency Medicine, Anæsthesia or Intensive Care.
• Be actively involved in patient care in their normal clinical practice. The Director must have direct clinical involvement with the service.

Duties and responsibilities of the Director include:

• Selection of air medical crew
• Formal input into coordination of the aircrew's orientation training
• Continuing medical education and total quality management program.
• Coordination of a teaching program to include:

• • Principles and practice of in-flight patient care.
  • Limitations to patient selection
  • Altitude physiology and pathophysiology
  • Effects of transport (including flight) on patient care
• Setting up an ongoing review of medical guidelines and protocols for patient care where appropriate.
• Organisation and implementation of a regular (eg. monthly) clinical Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement program. There must be a written record of such meetings with adequate mechanism for implementing recommendations.
• Selection of medical equipment which is consistent with the service's mission statement and safe and effective in the aeromedical environment.
• Active involvement in conjunction with senior operational staff in establishing operational policies which relate to patient care or medical crew activities.