Tag: medical transportation

The History of the Air Ambulance

We have all come to know the familiar sound of the helicopter overhead that is flying quickly from the scene of a tragic car crash to the nearest trauma center at a nearby hospital. We may have even known someone who has needed to utilize such air ambulance service. Do you know the history behind these marvelous methods of medical transportation?

Think back nearly a century ago. During World War I, air ambulances were first introduced. Between 1914 and 1918, a variety of military organization tested the use of flying ambulances to treat patients. Over time, this beginning has spawned into the air ambulances of today.

What later became the Royal Doctor Flying Service started in the year 1928. This milestone event was the first air ambulance service ever to exist. This service began in the Australian Outback. This non-profit organization was intended to provide service to people living in the remote areas of the Outback. The Royal Doctor Flying Service provided emergency medical care, as well as, primary care for individuals who found it difficult to reach general healthcare facilities or hospitals due to the distance.

In 1934, Marie Marvingt started an air ambulance service. This was the first civil air ambulance service in Africa. The air ambulance service was established in Morocco. Again, the remote areas and terrain played a role in the decision to begin this service in the specific location.

Marie Marvingt used her pioneering spirit and record-breaking personality to help others when she began the air ambulance unit. She was the first woman to fly combat missions as a bomber pilot. She also was a qualified nurse. Specializing in aviation medicine she was the perfect candidate to begin the air ambulance service in Morocco. In fact, she worked to establish air ambulance services worldwide.

It was in 1936 that a military air ambulance service assisted wounded. The injured were evacuated from the Spanish Civil War. The wounded received treatment in Nazi Germany.

The Saskatchewan government established the first civil air ambulance in North America in 1946. Regina, Canada was home to this landmark service. Still today the air ambulance service is in operation.

Only one year later in 1947, Schaefer Air Service began. This was the first air ambulance service in the U.S. Founded in Los Angeles, California by J. Walter Schaefer. The Schaefer air ambulance service also became the first to be FAA certified in the United States.

It wasn’t until November 1 of 1970, that the first German Air ambulance helicopter began service at the hospital of Harlaching, Munich. This unit was called Christoph 1. As the idea spread over Germany, the air ambulance service continued to grow rapidly. By 1975, Christoph 10 began service. Currently, around 80 helicopters are being used as air ambulances in Germany. Each unit is named after Saint Christopher, the patron saint of travelers.

Denver, Colorado was home to the first hospital-based air ambulance medical helicopter in the United States. In 1977, Flight for Life began. Soon, the helicopter air ambulances expanded to use other types of aircraft.

In 1977, Ontario, Canada a flight paramedic program began with a single rotor-wing aircraft. Today, this program has become the largest and most sophisticated air ambulance program in North America. The fleet is dispatched to over 17,000 missions annually.

Lee County, Florida began a public service air ambulance transport in 1978. They began using a Bell47 then progressed to a BO 105. Currently, they use a BO 105 and an EC-145.

Today, the air ambulance industry has grown and expanded to become worldwide. Aircraft vary from helicopters to jets. The medical advances and technology has also grown to include high-tech tools and equipment that can effectively monitor and prolong life during medical emergencies in the air.

Air Ambulance and Transported to Any Hospital of Choice

Whether you have pre-existing medical conditions or are as healthy as a horse, you never know what might happen. When you are close to home, you know just where to head in an emergency. If a medical emergency should arise, you would travel to your trusted local hospital to receive superior medical treatment near friends and family, but what happens when you are away from home?

Whether you are traveling a few states away or halfway around the globe, you can rest assured knowing that you can be transported to the hospital of your choice quickly and conveniently without experiencing outrageous costs. MedjetAssist is a company that offers excellent service for travelers at reasonable rates. A family can secure air ambulance transportation coverage while traveling over 150 miles from home for an annual fee of only $350. An individual pays only $225 for a year’s worth of coverage. What a small cost for peace of mind.

What makes MedjetAssist so different from other medical evacuation services? Like other medical evacuation services, MedjetAssist sends an air ambulance and medical staff to pick you up from the hospital to transport you to another medical facility. The difference lies in the details. MedjetAssist allows the patient to determine the hospital of their choice as the final destination. Most medical evacuation services require the transit to be deemed medically necessary. With MedjetAssist, it does not matter what the reason. MedjetAssist will be there to pick you up.

Upon hospitalization, the nature of the injury or illness does not matter. Most other medical evacuation services have specific conditions that apply for patients to be transported by air ambulance. MedjetAssist is different.

MedjetAssist has a global network of staff that can coordinate air ambulance transportation upon request from members. The fee for such transportation is extremely expensive for someone who does not have coverage. Medical transportation via air ambulance can cost between $10,000 to $75,000. As a member of MedjetAssist, you will not be charged this enormous fee. It is easy to see why this coverage is a good investment.

MedjetAssist also offers short-term coverage. This type of coverage is perfect for someone planning a trip several miles away from home. Maybe you are a homebody most of the time, but you have decided to spend a month away from home in a foreign country. You’ve already made the plans and purchased the tickets. Do you need to pay for an entire years worth of service? With MedjetAssist, short-term coverage is available. This type of coverage starts at a mere $85. Considering the cost of just one trip in an air ambulance, this service could really save a bundle of money.

Ask your travel agent about MedjetAssist service when planning your next trip away from home. It is comforting to know that you are protected regardless of where you travel around the world. The minimal investment will save a bundle if you should ever need to be transported by air ambulance and evacuated to your local home hospital. MedjetAssist offers excellent coverage at an affordable price.

Who Needs an Air Ambulance?

We all hope that we never experience a trauma or medical emergency that requires treatment. No one ever thinks they will be force to deal with a severe or critical medical condition that requires extensive medical treatment and care. Although we never want to be in such a circumstance, it is important to be informed about such issues. When patients require medical attention during transport, the typical method of travel involves an ambulance, but in specific cases, standard medical transportation is not enough. An air ambulance may be just what the doctor ordered.

What medical conditions and critical situations call for the use of an air ambulance? Each case is different based on the specific medical needs of the patient. There is no exact rule of thumb, but some basic guidelines do exist to determine which patients require the use of an air ambulance.

If the patient’s doctor feels that the patient should not travel by air with conventional airlines due to their specific medical needs, the doctor will order travel by an air ambulance. Numerous companies and organizations exist to safely transport patients in this way. Each company has their own specific requirements for staff on board the flight. Special medical circumstances may call for specific medical teams to fly aboard the air ambulance with the patient.

Here are some examples of medical conditions that may indicate a need to travel by air ambulance:

*Patients suffering from respiratory conditions that require ventilators

*trauma patients

*patients with neurological conditions that require intra cranial monitoring

*IABP patients that require balloon pumps

*patients with multiple IV drips

*transplant patients

*obstetric patients requiring intensive care

*NICU patients

The patients that require continuous medical monitoring and the use of specialized medical equipment are excellent candidates for travel by air ambulance. There is no plausible way for a patient with severe medical conditions to travel by conventional methods while achieving comfort and appropriate medical care.

When time is of the essence, standard flights would not be speedy enough to safely transport a patient to their destination. Also, it is impossible to spontaneously board a conventional flight with an entire medical staff and equipment. For this reason, doctors and patients choose to travel by air ambulance.

Air ambulance services are most commonly thought of as the helicopters that fly accident victims from the scene of a car crash to the nearest hospital that is capable of providing proper treatment for the severe injuries sustained in the crash. On the contrary, air ambulance services include so much more than just this sector of service.

An air ambulance may be a chopper, but it also can include planes such as turboprops and jets.

The type of aircraft used should be determined by the patients needs, as well as, by the distance traveled. For example, a patient should typically be transported by a jet when they require air ambulance transportation for distances greater than 500 miles. This is due to the time traveled, necessary stops to refuel small planes, the patient’s comfort and stress level.

Traveling by air ambulance may not be an experience that you want to add to your to-do list, but it may be medically necessary in the future. Patients who require constant medical attention, the use of specific medical equipment, or have numerous IV drips may require the use of such services. Should the doctor feel that this specialized service is beneficial, you will be glad that the air ambulance services are available.