DES MOINES, Iowa — MercyOne is hoping to address Iowa’s obstetrics provider shortage while also providing needed care to mothers with its new Maternal Transport Team.
On Tuesday MercyOne unveiled the new service at their Des Moines campus. The service pairs up specially trained Neonatal Intensive Care (NICU) and Maternal nurses with the MercyOne Air Med Flight Team and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT). The team also has access to external Fetal Heart Monitoring equipment, which allows providers to monitor patient vitals across the state and determine what care is needed.
According to MercyOne, about 20 years ago a similar program existed in Iowa, but it was underutilized and eventually ceased operations due to the significant number of OBs at the time. In recent years, the number of OBs in the state have decreased, especially in rural areas.
Ryan Gochoel, regional director of MercyOne Emergency Transport, said this team has been in the works for over a year and its aim is to ensure mothers and babies from anywhere in the state get the care they need.