Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago Receives Third CAMTS Reaccreditation

Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago’s Transport Team recently received accreditation for the third time from the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems (CAMTS). CAMTS is an independent, non-profit agency which audits and accredits transports teams throughout the country and the world in all modes of transport: ground, helicopter and fixed wing.  CAMTS standards were developed to establish measures in support of safety and quality care in the medical transport industry.

“This accreditation is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our highly-skilled team that transports more than 1800 newborns and pediatric patients in and out of our hospital each year,” said Bob Newmyer, MD, Medical Director of Lurie Children’s Transport Team and attending physician in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Lurie Children’s.   

The Accreditation Standards address issues of patient care, quality, communications and safety in the transport of critically ill patients in all modes of transportation. Each standard is supported by measurable criteria. Accreditation standards are periodically revised to reflect the dynamic, changing environment of medical transport with considerable input from all disciplines of the medical profession. The Commission believes that the two highest priorities of an air medical or ground inter-facility transport service are patient care and safety of the transport environment.

“This is the gold standard for medical transport teams,” said Laura Westley, RN, Senior Director, and Interfacilty Transport Services.  “CAMTS commended us on the outstanding organizational support we receive as well as the safety practices, landing agreements and ongoing safety education associated with the Lurie Children's heliport."

Lurie Children’s Transport Team, a Midwest leader in neonatal and pediatric transport, consists of registered nurses and respiratory therapists. Most patients transported to Lurie Children's are from referral hospitals and are admitted directly into one of its acute care or intensive care units.

Lurie Children’s is ranked as one of the top children’s hospitals on the U.S. News & World Report. It is the pediatric teaching arm for Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.