MEDICAL PRIORITY FLT BEGINS APCH PROC PRIOR TO ATC CLRNC; PRIORITY HANDLING ASSUMPTIONS BY THE REPORTER LISTED AS CAUSAL.

Narrative

ON JUN/XA/08 WE WERE FLYING A MEDICAL FLT IN A LEAR JET (LJ35A) WITH A CHILD'S HEART ON BOARD. WHILE DSNDING TO LAND ON RWY 36 AT ZZZ AND AT 2300 FT A ZZZ APCH CTLR TOLD US WE WERE CLRED TO 3000 FT. BOTH THE PF AND I THOUGHT WE WERE CLRED FOR THE VISUAL APCH BEHIND A CITATION COMING IN FROM THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION AND LNDG ON THE SAME RWY. WE BEGAN TO CLB BACK TO 3000 FT. PRIOR TO THE CONFUSION; NUMEROUS TFC ALERTS WERE ISSUED TO US ABOUT THE CITATION AND ALSO A SMALL PIPER ACFT THAT PASSED WITHIN 1 MI FROM US AT THE SAME ALT. ALTHOUGH WE WERE A MEDICAL FLT; WE WERE GIVEN SEVERAL VECTORS FOR OUR DSCNT. I THOUGHT WE WOULD BE GIVEN PRIORITY DUE TO OUR CALL SIGN AND ALLOWED THE PF TO CONTINUE FLYING AT 250 KTS UNTIL WE WERE ABOUT 8 MI FROM THE ARPT AND DSNDING FROM 5000 FT. AT THAT TIME WE BEGAN TO SLOW UP AND STARTED TO CONFIGURE. I BELIEVED THE CITATION WOULD BE GIVEN A VECTOR AND WE WOULD BE ALLOWED TO LAND FIRST BUT THAT DID NOT HAPPEN. IN RETROSPECT; WE SHOULD HAVE SLOWED TO 200 KTS EARLIER AND ALLOWED FOR MORE SEPARATION AND TIME. THERE WAS A LOT OF COMS GOING ON BTWN SEVERAL ACFT AND THE CTLR BUT I DO NOT RECALL READING BACK MAINTAIN 3000 FT AND BELIEVED WE WERE CLRED FOR THE APCH. MAYBE A CALL SIGN OR OTHER METHODOLOGY CAN BE DEVELOPED FOR USE TO PASS ON TO THE ATC CTLRS THAT THIS IS REALLY AN EXTREMELY URGENT CASE.