UAV Drones: The Future of Emergency Healthcare Services

We live in a digital era, where technologies have become more efficient than humans. Let’s consider an example of aerial drug delivery systems – Areial systems with no crew members supply medical deliveries quicker, safer, and cheaper than traditional ground and/or air delivery systems, thus aiding emergency service providers to offer enhanced services quickly to disaster areas.

How are Medical & Emergency Service Providers Benefiting from UAV Drones?

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), usually referred as a drone, is an airplane without any human pilot, crew, or travellers on board. These days, medical supplies’ companies and government organisations across the globe are attempting to integrate UAV drone technology to boost medical and emergency healthcare efforts. Let’s dive in and go through some amazing examples where healthcare and emergency service providers are harnessing the benefits of UAV drones:

1. In February 2022, Wingcopter, a German aerospace firm that designs & develops unmanned eVTOL delivery drones, joined hands with UAV LATAM, a leading company having around 10+ years of experience in the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) arena. This partnership aims to make use of cargo drones to deliver medical supplies to remote village areas in the Peruvian Andes. Industry leaders believe that this partnership will accelerate the supply of vaccines, drugs, blood, laboratory samples, and explicit treatments for patients in the hard-to-reach locations, while plummeting the carbon footprint and turning the overall supply chain into greener and eco-friendly system.

2. In December 2021, Avy, a forerunner in innovative aviation technology, launched a novel ‘Drone Response Network’ for offering a swift response solution that can immediately organize UAV drones to accomplish crucial and lifesaving tasks. This network is proficient in merging docking stations with Avy’s Aera autonomous drones to aid medical distributers or emergency service providers during life-threatening events. This network has been used to perform search & rescue operations, during fire events, and to develop situational awareness is perilous conditions.

3. Skyfarer, a foremost a conglomerate of businesses as well as government organisations in the UK, is working on forming a UAV network to deliver blood, vaccines, and other crucial items to healthcare centres. The company partners aims to form a hub-and-spoke model that will offer quick and efficient delivery of medical deliveries.

If such UAV drone models that aid medical deliveries are rolled-out across the globe, the UAV drones market growth is sure to hit the roof in the coming years.

The Beginning of New Era of Aerial Drug Delivery Systems

A number of government agencies, healthcare firms, and investors have realised the potential of UAV drones in fast-tracking the productivity and efficiency of the healthcare industry, especially during the lethal COVID-19 pandemic. They are taking significant steps to boost the use of aerial drone systems in the medical sector.

For instance, several efforts are underway in the U.S. to surge the usage of UVA drones in healthcare and emergency missions. In June 2022, Zipline, a worldwide frontrunner in instant logistics, received FAA Part 135 Air Carrier Certification to expand its automated, on-demand delivery service in the U.S. With this certificate, Zipline has got the authority and power to carryout longer flights. The company is planning to work with 3 leading healthcare industry players to increase on-demand medical deliveries by drone in North Carolina.

The Bottom Line

Industry leaders have a firm belief that the use of UAV drones for delivering medical products and aiding in emergency missions will endure to magnify in the years to come. However, several efforts are, at present, in process to make possible drone operations for supplying medical facilities to numerous undeveloped or developing regions of the world —where adequate and timely medical help is a matter of concern. Nearly half of the global population has inadequate access to healthcare services and UAV drones can help in ramping up the availability of global healthcare facilities. Drones can effortlessly connect healthcare centres and laboratories with patients, thus enhancing outcomes and plummeting waiting periods, specifically in remote areas.

To sum up, as the UAV drone market develops and matures—and as more clinicians, healthcare professionals, patients, and emergency service authorities embrace this innovative technology—the world can witness many more developments in the medical arena.

About the Author(s)

Princy A. J

Princy holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the prestigious Tamil Nadu Dr. M.G.R. University at Chennai, India. After a successful academic record, she pursued her passion for writing. A thorough professional and enthusiastic writer, she enjoys writing on various categories and advancements in the global industries. She plays an instrumental role in writing about current updates, news, blogs, and trends.