There are a number of purposes for which stretchers are used and each will dictate the type of stretcher appropriate to its need. Patients, victims or casualties requiring attention will often need a specific stretcher that meets circumstances.
Common stretcher use
The most common use for a stretcher is to simply remove a person out of harms way, whether this is an injured sportsperson on a playing field or a casualty of war on the battlefield. A simple muscle strain or slight flesh wound and a pole stretcher should do the job. However, if the person has received a blow to the head or neck injury then a stretcher that immobilises them and keeps them from causing further complications.
Immobilising the patient
Other considerations with stretcher selection are the physical environment. If a person has to be moved through narrow passageways, through stairwells or in confined spaces then a specialist stretcher may be called for. Sleds and excavation chairs are ideal for evacuating tall buildings and scoop stretchers are often deployed for extracting injured people in earthquake damaged areas or from collapsed buildings.
Difficult terrain stretchers
Remote rescue also calls for a particular type of stretcher, especially if the casualty needs to be retrieved from a harsh wilderness or mountainous peak. Here rescue parties often select collapsible stretchers that are easy to carry and quickly assembled on site. Basket stretchers are also a popular choice in difficult terrain, particularly with helicopter crews for plucking casualties off cliff faces, lonely beaches or from the water. They need to be durable to sustain the rigours of dangling outside the aircraft, and also stable enough to hold and lift the patient.
Durable stretchers
Basket stretchers are most commonly used stretcher due to their versatility and the security they offer in transporting an injured person. They can be equipped with extra anchor points for hoisting, protective shields to cover a patients head and body, thermal blankets, flotation bags and backboards, all designed to ensure the persons safety, no matter from where they are being rescued.
Since the humble origins of the pole stretcher over 100 years ago there have been innovative technological and material developments. These have led to the current situation we have today, where no matter what the circumstances are that a person finds themselves injured in, there is always the perfect stretcher solution available. And when nothing else is to hand, the simple pole stretcher is still in use to get patients quickly and safely out of harms way.
