29-01-2025
St. Joseph Health opening of Air Med-12 North Base
Leon County, TX (FOX 44) — The Air Med 12 Air Ambulance Program began operations in the Brazos Valley in May 2005.
The St. Joseph Health System, Leon County officials, and the MedTrans Corporation partnered in 2023 to form a workgroup aimed at bringing 'Air Med 12 North' to Centerville.
St. Joseph Health said this was a multi-year joint effort between different health and governmental organizations that will bring enhanced access to critical care for citizens of Leon County.
This is the first and only aero-medical provider in the Brazos Valley in the past 20 years.
'I'm unbelievably excited,' St. Joseph Health EMS Director, Billy Rice said. 'I mean, this has been years and years and years in the making. There were, of course, times we thought maybe it was never going to happen, but it's just taken a lot of work.'
Air Med 12 North Base always has a backup plan incase they can't fly the helicopter.
'If the aircraft can't fly, let's say the weather's bad,' Rice said. 'There's still another resource for the county. The flight crew will jump in one of these Tahoe with their blood, with their equipment, and they can intercept any ambulance in the county.'
Leon County recognized that their response time and lack of available resources for critical patients was a problem, this new program was the solution.
Recently Air Med 12 got a call from a patient who was having a stroke.
'By the helicopter being here, when we got the call, we were probably 12 or 15 miles out of town, out east,' Centerville Fire Chief, John Adams said. 'And I just got word back that because of the quick response and they got the patient loaded and to Houston, that it has basically saved his life.'
The helicopter is also equipped with four units of blood and other emergency equipment the staff needs.
This base will be staffed full-time with a flight nurse and flight paramedic with modern medical equipment.
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