"Snow Dragon" twists and turns, revealing the "Snow F1" medical protection

The medical security team reveals how to do a good job in the "Snow Dragon" race medical protection.　Courtesy of Peking University People's Hospital

BEIJING, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Beijing Winter Olympics are about to open. The bobsleigh ride is arguably the fastest sport in the Winter Olympics, and this "brave game" has an average speed of more than 130 kilometers per hour and is known as "Snow F1". Why is it difficult to save people on the "Snow Dragon"? Why are medical stations located near curves? Why do team members wear protective clothing? ...... Today, the medical security team of Peking University People's Hospital for the 2022 Winter Olympics, as the venue support hospital, revealed how to do a good job in medical protection during the "Snow Dragon" competition.

The National Bobsleigh Center is located in the middle of Xiaohaituo Mountain, the first peak in northern Beijing, China's first Olympic standard bobsleigh track, with a total length of 1975 meters, a vertical drop of 121 meters, and 16 curves with different angles and inclinations. Because of its shape like a silver dragon coiled on a ridge, it is figuratively called "Snow Dragon". During the Winter Olympics, it will undertake all the competitions of bobsleighs, steel frame bobsleighs and bobsleighs.

What are the dangers of racing?

The bobsleigh race is known as "Snow F1". According to the medical security team, because of its "fast speed", once the athletes rush out of the track or hit the fence, the heavy ones are life-threatening, and the light ones have orthopedic injuries, such as shoulder and limb injuries, spine trauma, head trauma, and the incidence of concussion in head trauma is also very high.

Therefore, in addition to wearing protective devices such as helmets, athletes also need to precisely control their bodies to ensure their own safety.

At the same time, professional, efficient and highly skilled medical care is particularly important.

Who escorts "Snow F1"? The medical security team of Peking University People's Hospital, which participated in the medical security of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, has a total of 54 members, which is the core backbone from 27 clinical, medical technology and other disciplines. They complement each other's strengths and complement each other' strengths, focusing on the trauma treatment and bone trauma of athlete injuries, but also taking into account the needs of staff and spectators, and equipped with experts including trauma, orthopedics, surgery, emergency department, internal medicine and other disciplines to meet the various medical treatments that may occur throughout the venue. During the race, the team members will be distributed at the FOP10 medical station (track medical station), FOP15 medical station, departure area, end area, staff, spectator area 6 medical stations to participate in the protection work.

For more than two years, the team members began to understand the competition project, repeatedly simulated the exercise, and measured the valuable rescue map with their feet.

The members of the medical security team photographed the "Snow Dragon" at 6 a.m. and midnight.　Courtesy of Peking University People's Hospital

Why are medical stations set up in a "bend"?

The Snow Dragon has set up a total of 16 curves from top to bottom, of which the 11th bend is a unique 360-degree swing bend in the world.

The departure area medical station is the place where athletes prepare and depart, requiring athletes to have explosive power, so athletes may have muscle strains, joint injuries and other accidents here. Down, there is the FOP10 medical station, once an accident occurs before the high point of the spiral bend, the athlete may stay near the 10th turn; down, it is the position of the 15th turn, which is the lowest point of the entire arena, that is, the fastest point, and the athlete can reach a speed of 130 to 140 kilometers per hour, which is also the top priority of the medical protection of the whole race. Further down, is the end of the district medical station, where the athlete belongs to the process of climbing, the speed in the process of slowing down will lose balance, and there will be an accident of overturning and skidding.

Why is it difficult to save people on the "Snow Dragon"?

According to the medical security team, the whole track is very narrow, only 1.5 meters wide. Reaching very high speeds on such a narrow track can be imagined, and if there is an accident, the danger to athletes is very great.

The medical team members had to rush to the location of the accident athlete, but the long curve made it difficult to find the athlete. Coupled with the requirements of the epidemic, medical team members need to wear secondary protection to run towards athletes. The whole track from top to bottom is slope, but also ice, medical team members need to put on crampons, stand on the ice surface of the slope, use stretchers to carry 100 kg athletes out of the track, the physical strength of medical team members is also a very big test.

Why do medical team members wear protective clothing at all times?

The medical team said that under the normalization of epidemic prevention and control, the pre-certification guarantee activities and the World Cup are the first important test activities for a large number of overseas personnel to enter the country, requiring the medical security team members in the closed loop to maintain secondary protection throughout the process.

When the team members arrive at the medical station they serve, they need to wear protective clothing and be on standby at any time.

The team members are divided into two groups in the morning and evening. Because there were no toilets at the medical station, the team members tried not to drink water before leaving. In the event of an accident on the track that requires rescue, at least 6-8 people need to arrive at the scene in the shortest possible time and at the fastest speed.

Because the competitions are all done outdoors, the cold is another test for the medical team. At the same time, the cleaning and disinfection of medical stations is the sole responsibility of the medical security team members. Each medical site is generally divided into "three districts and two passages", of which "three areas" is the cleaning area, semi-polluted area (buffer zone) and the polluted area, after wearing protective clothing, the team members need to place all the items in the site area, drug specifications, check the number of names, including cleaning, such as wiping the table, wiping the floor, collecting garbage, sealing the box, dumping garbage, the team members must follow the process to complete.

54 team members, according to the high and low risk of medical security of different figures divided into two groups, namely the track and the audience medical security area, the two groups of team members of the working and living areas are not together, there are 8 team members who undertake the medical security task of the closed-loop audience medical station, during the guarantee period, eating, living and serving can not be in contact with the 46 team members serving the track in the closed loop. During the work, they may meet occasionally, and can only look at each other from a distance and greet each other. (End)