Mobile hyperbaric unit

A mobile hyperbaric apparatus, comprising:

• a) a vehicle having a front cab with a driver's seat for a driver and a rear section, said rear section including a partition comprising a right side panel and a left side panel;
• b) a control station behind said driver's seat having ambient pressure and positioned in between the partition and the front cab, said control station sized and shaped to hold a control station operator;
• c) a removable pod that is removable from both said front cab and said control station and removably attachable to the vehicle rear section behind said control station, the pod having an interior, a top wall, left and right side walls, a front wall, a rear wall, a bottom wall, and one or more pod doors, wherein when the pod is attached to the chassis, the partition has a portion that extends at least partially over said pod top wall and the right side panel of the partition is configured to cover a portion of the right side wall of the pod, and the left side panel of the partition is configured to cover a portion of the left side wall of the pod;
• d) one or more support systems on said vehicle and controllable by the control station operator for maintaining a desired pressure within said pod interior that is not ambient pressure;
• and
• e) wherein the control station increases pressure in the pod to the desired pressure, while the vehicle and the pod are simultaneously transported to a facility having a hospital hyperbaric system chamber.

A method of administering hyperbaric oxygen medical treatment to a patient with a mobile treatment unit, comprising the steps of:

• a) providing a mobile hyperbaric vehicle having a front cab, with a driver's seat that enables support for a driver, a vehicle chassis including a rear bed and a docking station having a partition;
• b) a control station behind said driver's seat having ambient pressure and positioned in between the partition and the front cab;
• c) said partition comprising a right side panel and a left side panel, wherein the right side panel left side panel forming an opening that extends upwardly from the rear bed behind at a position next to the control station;
• d) transporting the mobile hyperbaric vehicle to a location of a patient needing emergency medical treatment;
• e) placing the patient in a pod having a top wall, left and right side walls, a front wall, a rear wall, and a bottom wall that is sized and shaped to occupy and rest upon the rear bed, wherein the pod is removably connected to said mobile hyperbaric vehicle next to and behind said partition opening, wherein the partition is configured to receive a portion of the pod, and when the pod is attached to the chassis, the right side panel of the partition is configured to cover a portion of the right side wall of the pod, and the left side panel of the partition is configured to cover a portion of the left side wall of the pod;
• f) treating the patient in the pod via the control station by increasing pressure in the pod to a desired pressure that is not ambient pressure, while simultaneously transporting the vehicle and pod with the patient to a facility having a hospital hyperbaric system chamber;
• g) detaching the pod from the docking station, the front cab and the control station;
• h) transporting the pod to the hospital hyperbaric system chamber on a pod chassis;
• i) connecting the pod to the hospital hyperbaric system chamber such that the desired pressure in the pod and the hospital hyperbaric system chamber remain constant for the patient;
• j) transporting the patient from the pod to the hospital hyperbaric system chamber without disrupting the desired pressure for the patient;
• and
• k) disconnecting the pod from the hospital hyperbaric system chamber without disrupting the desired pressure for the patient.