The Board of Directors and Administration of St. Catherine Hospital are pleased to announce that they have reached a preferred provider agreement with Ballard Aviation / EagleMed, assuring that residents of Southwest Kansas not only receive high quality care but will also benefit from the most rapid air transport available in the region when indicated.  The agreement provides for key enhancements to the current fixed wing aircraft stationed at the Garden City Regional Airport, which among other things, will increase its air speed and therefore shorten transport air time in an emergency.  Additionally, the aircraft will proudly display the colors and logo of St. Catherine Hospital

EagleMed is a division of Ballard Aviation, Inc. of Wichita.  Founded by Jim and Iva Ballard in 1976, Ballard Aviation received numerous requests from area hospitals for air ambulance services.  EagleMed was founded in 1982 to meet the demand for these services.  With 13 bases of operation in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma, EagleMed provides air ambulance services for the Midwest.  EagleMed was the first Type 1 licensed Air Ambulance in the State of Kansas.  A full-time medical director on staff ensures that the highest medical standards are met. They maintain an experienced staff of physicians, registered nurses, respiratory therapists and paramedics certified in ACLS, PHTLS, PALS, NRP and specialized training in aeromedical care.  Ballard Aviation and EagleMed continue to own and operate the air ambulance and maintain responsibility for its service.

St. Catherine Hospital is the region’s largest non-profit acute care medical center, providing a broad range of medical and surgical services, including High Risk Obstetrics, Newborn and Adult Intensive Care, General and Orthopedic Surgery.  Additionally, the recently announced affiliation with Kansas Heart Hospital and Cardiovascular Consultants of Kansas to develop a state of the art cardiovascular service within St. Catherine further underscores the importance of this agreement.  “St. Catherine’s relationship with EagleMed is another step towards ensuring effective care and health-related transport for the residents of Garden City and Southwestern Kansas.  Our patients deserve no less and St. Catherine’s has made it a certainty,” said Dr. Gregory Duick, founder of Cardiovascular Consultants of Kansas. 

“Providing the highest quality medical care available to the patients of Southwest Kansas is our main priority,” said Scott Taylor, President/CEO of St. Catherine Hospital. “The availability of this aircraft will expedite access within the region, not only to St. Catherine Hospital’s growing spectrum of services, but to those facilities we routinely rely on for specialty care such as Kansas Heart Hospital”.  “We are extremely pleased that Jim and Iva Ballard and Ballard Aviation/Eaglemed have chosen to team up with us in our mission to continue to provide quality healthcare to the people in our community and the communities of Southwestern Kansas.”