WHILE Formula One drivers are fully concentrated on speeding along the Shanghai International Circuit, members of a professional medical team are holding their breath, ready to provide immediate medical aid should an accident occur.

The more than 80 specialists, most of them doctors from Shanghai’s Huashan Hospital, have been serving on the F1 Chinese Grand Prix medical team since the inaugural race in 2004.

“F1 is the world’s fastest motor sport, and the requirements for its medical team are similar: fast and accurate,” said Professor Chen Shiyi, director of Sports Medicine and Arthroscopy Surgery division of Huashan Hospital. As F1 Chinese Grand Prix’s chief medical officer, Chen’s responsibilities include organizing and training doctors and volunteers to serve for the annual event.

“When there is an accident in F1, it’s usually serious,” Chen told Shanghai Daily. “Our team is equipped with top-tier experts and equipment, including two medical evacuation helicopters that can transfer patients from the circuit to Huashan Hospital in nine minutes,” he said, adding it was the first time that Shanghai opened its air space temporarily for helicopters to serve for a sports event.

Chen said they used to borrow the helicopters from Donghai Rescue Bureau at the beginning, but got them from Shanghai police when they were equipped with police-use helicopters in 2010. This year, the team will rent the helicopters privately.

According to Chen, a helicopter took its first mission in the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix in 2004, as two F1 officials crashed going through a tunnel beside the circuit before the start of the race. One person lost consciousness on scene and was immediately taken to Huashan Hospital by a helicopter. The other official was only slightly injured, and was taken to the hospital in an ambulance.

“Helicopters are used for emergencies. Other medical needs can be met at a medical center we have set up in the circuit since Thursday.”

Chen said the center is like a clinic where two emergency surgeries can be performed at the same time. Apart from surgeons, those serving in the center include physicians, orthopedists, burn injury experts, brain specialists, anesthetists, pharmacists and ICU nurses.

Chen said the majority of the patients they received at the center were team staff that scalded or hurt themselves when operating in the paddocks. Some encounter digesting problems from local food, or other infections and allergies. No major injury involving drivers has ever occurred in Shanghai.

“F1 has upgraded its protection for drivers over the years. However, it doesn’t mean that the medical team is having an easier job. The new technologies applied to the cars and races including HANS (head and neck support device) and KERS (kinetic energy recovery systems) all added new training items for the medical team.

“A staff has to wear special gloves when touching a race car due to the KERS to avoid being hit by electricity. But that adds to the difficulty of rescuing a driver. There is a certain way to unlock the HANS device, but it is more easily done by bare hands,” said Chen.

FIA tests each Grand Prix’s medical team before a race is hosted each year. Chen is responsible for picking and training his team members under the medical requirements by FIA.

“When we first started, I had no clue on how to organize a medical team to serve for an F1 race.”

Chen said he was given a chance to visit the Le Mans Circuit in France after being named the chief medical officer of Chinese Grand Prix. There, he learned from the circuit medical director what kind of incidents can occur during the race and on the sidelines, and how to properly choose a team that will cover the whole circuit.

Chen himself used to be an orthopedist in Australia, but he is also a sports fan. He was approached by Chinese Grand Prix local organizers in 2003 for his medical background, overseas experience and language ability, and was later approved by FIA as the chief medical officer of Chinese Grand Prix.

During an F1 race, three kinds of basic medical teams are on stand by — FIV (fast interference vehicle), ET (extrication team) and ambulance team. A FIV team should be equipped with an experienced resuscitation doctor or an anesthetist for immediate rescue. The ET team is responsible for helping the driver get out of the car before the ambulance team takes the driver to the medical center.

“The three kinds of teams have to work efficiently with each other. Also, medical staff could only go clockwise along the surface road around the circuit. That’s why pre-race trainings are extremely important to help the staff get familiar with the circuit and their duties.”

The Chinese Grand Prix has arranged several sets of each team, each with its own section of circuit to take care of. Other medical staff serve at other sites, like the pit lane, the helicopter, or the medical center.

“Each F1 team has a different cabin design for the car. Before the race, our ET team members have to take trials with every F1 team to get to know how to take out the removable seat from a car when an accident happens,” said Chen. The maximum time FIA set for ET team to help a driver out of a car is two minutes.

As the chief medical director, Chen advises the race director on whether a race should be suspended due to an emergency or what time racing flags should be given.

Also, he is planning for some adjustments in his medical team including hiring volunteers from the public to replace some doctors.

“Take an ET team for example. It’s not necessary for all its six members to be doctors. Actually, one doctor in one ET team is enough,” he said, explaining that with proper training, ordinary people would be able to carry out the same work.

Chen said the adjustment was for the sake of stability of a medical team, as full time doctors tend to be busy and can’t guarantee time for all the trainings and races every year.

Before this year’s Chinese Grand Prix, Chen gave a medical exam to McLaren driver Fernando Alonso on Thursday to make sure he was fit enough for the Sunday race. Alonso broke his ribs and suffered a lung injury in a crash during the season-opener in Australia. He was later ruled out of the Bahrain Grand Prix due to the injuries.

“We will look at the scan results. If he has no more pain or discomfort in his ribs, he should be ready for the race in Shanghai,” said Chen.

Chen’s team has also served for international events like MotoGP, A1, and other auto racing events. As a sports medicine and arthroscopy surgery expert, he was Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang’s attending doctor during the 2008 Olympic Games, and the director of the medical team serving for Team China during the 2012 London Olympic Games.