Hebron Fire District puts Blood 43 into service, bringing prehospital blood transfusions to Northern Kentucky

The Hebron Fire District on Wednesday placed Blood 43 into service, launching what officials said is a regional prehospital blood transfusion program designed to deliver blood products to critically bleeding patients before they reach the hospital. The unit is based at Hebron Fire Station 43 and is positioned to respond quickly to incidents along major interstate corridors in Northern Kentucky.

According to coverage of the launch, Blood 43 is a specially equipped unit that carries temperature-controlled blood products, including two units of packed red blood cells and two units of plasma. The cooler is designed to keep the products within a narrow temperature range, described by the district as between 35 and 42 degrees Fahrenheit, a requirement officials said is critical to the effectiveness of the blood products used in emergency care.

The service is intended to help treat eligible patients suffering from critically bleeding conditions in the field, with the unit available not only for Hebron-based calls but also for responses across a broader region. Officials said Blood 43 can be requested by ambulances transporting a patient who meets program criteria when the patient is experiencing life-threatening bleeding and additional time before hospital care increases risk.

Hebron Fire District officials said the unit’s location matters for speed. Blood 43 is stationed at Hebron Fire Station 43, approximately four minutes from the Interstate 71/75 and Interstate 275 interchange, which officials described as one of Northern Kentucky’s busiest connections. That placement, according to the reports, is intended to give responding crews rapid access to interstate routes leading into multiple surrounding counties.

The program is described as the first prehospital blood transfusion unit in the region and as only the second such program at a Kentucky fire department. Division Chief of EMS for Hebron Fire District Adam McElhaney was quoted in the coverage describing the initiative as a major advancement in emergency medical services, saying it represents one of the biggest changes in EMS care in years and emphasizing the life-saving value of delivering blood products early in the care timeline.

Under the operating concept described in the reporting, Blood 43 is carried to the scene through coordination with EMS transport units, with the blood cooler being used to maintain product readiness for eligible patients. The district’s approach, as described, focuses on getting appropriate blood products to patients during the critical window after severe bleeding occurs and before hospital-based transfusion can take place.

Officials did not describe in the reporting any changes to dispatch protocols beyond the ability for ambulances to request Blood 43. The district’s next step, as implied by the launch coverage, will be operational follow-through, including continued staffing, maintenance of temperature controls, and coordination with regional EMS partners as the unit expands its day-to-day coverage.

The district’s launch comes as emergency care systems across the country have explored ways to reduce time to definitive treatment for traumatic injuries and other causes of massive bleeding. For patients and families, the practical effect of Blood 43 is the possibility that bleeding patients meeting program criteria may receive blood products sooner, potentially reducing the period during which they are transported without transfusion support. For the community, the program also adds a new capability to the local fire-based EMS infrastructure that officials say is designed to serve multiple counties and respond rapidly to high-speed interstate incidents.