“If you ask me whether it will be possible to use unmanned aircraft [drones] for the transport of medicines, blood, organs, a defibrillator, or other materials in one, five, or more years, I cannot provide an answer. However, I know that ULSSJ is equipping itself, in accordance with international best practices and knowledge in this area, with the tools and conditions necessary to accomplish this safely,” stated the chair of the board, Maria João Baptista.
This involves a pilot project developed by ULSSJ in collaboration with CEiiA – Center for Engineering and Development and the medical innovation lab 4LifeLAB, a consortium that brings together engineering and health, supported by specific national and European funding. For São João, the funding amounts to around 800,000 euros.
The use of drones is already common for recreational purposes, as well as in wartime contexts.
In disaster situations, such as earthquakes and tsunamis, drones have also been used to deliver medicines, blood, and equipment to remote areas.
Speaking to Lusa and citing examples from India, Uganda, Rwanda, among others, Maria João Baptista emphasized the words “efficacy” and “speed” to describe the benefits of using drones in healthcare.
“We know that even in contexts where healthcare is highly developed, in densely populated areas there are advantages. In one test that was not conducted by us, but in another context, it was shown that a defibrillator could be delivered by drone a minute and a half faster than by ambulance. For someone in cardiac arrest, a minute and a half is a critical period; it changes everything,” the doctor explained.
While noting that moving this project from testing to practice will only be possible once the process is well-developed, regulated, and planned, with oversight from the National Civil Aviation Authority (ANAC), Maria João Baptista revealed that ULSSJ has been conducting flights in a specific hospital area free of pedestrian traffic.
The aim is to test the payload capacity of the drones, temperature requirements, conservation guarantees, and necessary technology.
The first venture outside the hospital perimeter is not yet scheduled but is expected to be towards ULSSJ’s facility in Valongo.
“What if we manage to send vaccines from the hospital to health centers using a drone? Or collect blood samples taken elsewhere? We would avoid having personnel perform these tasks, allowing them to focus on more urgent duties,” she suggested, applying the same logic to teams and ambulances dispatched from a hospital to intercept a highway solely to transport medical equipment, which could instead be responding to another urgent incident.
In parallel with Porto, ULSSJ is aware of similar tests being conducted in American cities, Canada, the United States, London (England), and the Netherlands, locations that are also densely populated and present obstacles such as buildings.
“You achieve more efficiency within the system, avoid having people stuck in traffic, and even become more eco-friendly, reducing emissions. The environmental aspect of using drones in logistics processes must be valued,” Maria João Baptista added.
As part of this pilot project, a public tender has already been launched for the construction of a vertiport, a type of “drone heliport,” which in São João will be located in an elevated area.
“We must ensure absolute safety so that the drone does not pose a risk to people,” concluded Maria João Baptista.
