Medical Evacuation: Saving lives, helping families

Chris Hutton and his wife Julie 

A first-year med student didn’t know that his family membership with AirMed would come into play one day in early 2014

Sandy Kinkade Hutton has been an AirMed member for the past eight years. When she married Kevin Hutton in 2011, she added both her husband and stepson, Chris, onto her membership.

Chris Hutton is a first year med student at American University of the Caribbean located on Saint-Martin island in the Caribbean. Chris had experienced inability to urinate for several days, and finally made a decision along with his wife, Julie, who is a French citizen, to go to the local hospital to be checked by a doctor.

During what would be fairly routine treatment in any metropolitan medical center, the island medical staff was unable to place a catheter and traumatized Chris’s urethra. Then they managed to slice off a segment of a plastic catheter inside Chris’ bladder. His situation went from bad to worse within hours with concerns of peritonitis mounting. “The island surgeon said he had sliced off the tip of the catheter.” It wasn’t until we were back in the U.S. that the urologist told us it was a foot long piece of catheter,” Sandy said.

After the “oops” moment with the catheter, the Hutton’s knew they needed to get Chris off that island and to a higher level of medical care back in the United States. Sandy told him to make the call to AirMed.

Once the call to AirMed was made, AirMed put its operation in motion. “We talked to AirMed the entire time. We heard from them through email and through phone calls, they kept us informed every step of the way,” Sandy recalls.

Chris states "Lying in pain in a bed at night there at the island's hospital, it was the worst feeling, to feel a million miles away from home. Once the crews arrived, everything changed. I knew from the instant they walked in that I was safe, and on the road to recovery."

AirMed arrived, and Chris was transported to the University of Miami Hospital early the next morning. Because it was an international flight, U.S. Customs came to the ramp to check all passports. Chris was transported by ambulance to the hospital. “AirMed even arranged for a taxi to take Julie to the hospital when she was finished with Customs. It was just a level of completeness—AirMed saw to it that nobody was left stranded.” said Sandy.

Chris was taken into surgery in Miami to remove the catheter and assess the situation. A new catheter was inserted and remained in place for 3 days. It was removed, and Chris and Julie were able to return to St. Martin to resume his medical school studies with a new understanding of what it is like to be the patient.

Kevin and Sandy Kinkade Hutton

“The thing that makes this entire event even more remarkable,” Sandy continued, “is that I was a flight nurse for 13 years, and Kevin was a flight physician. I am a past President of the Association for Air Medical Services (AAMS), and Kevin is the current Chairman of MedEvac Foundation International. We really know this industry, inside and out. Neither of us ever, in a million years, thought we’d need to use our AirMed membership. It was SUCH a relief knowing that one call took care of everything.”

“As a flight nurse, I remember arriving at hospitals and the sigh of relief on people’s faces when the flight crew would show up,” Sandy said. “For the first time, I was on the other end of that scenario. I was on the patient side, and I knew professionals were on their way to get Chris off the island and that they were fully able to take care for him. It was such a relief once I knew the medical crew was on that island.”

Dr. Kevin Hutton added, “We want to really stress the fact that you never think it’s going happen to you. You simply never know when something like this will happen. Had we not had the AirMed membership, we’re not sure how this whole thing would have transpired.”

Sandy said, “I’ve seen so many times where people think their health insurance will cover this type of thing and it doesn’t. I’ve kept my AirMed membership all this time because you’d like to think that healthcare is good everywhere, especially on an island known for attracting tourists, but it is not.”

Chris and his family knew that AirMed had their back. Since he’s been back at school, Sandy has helped Chris write a protocol for the medical school he attends to try and put some sort of medevac membership policy in place. “ In the event of a medical emergency such as this, being prepared is the key,” she said. Chris commented, "I don't know what we would have done without AirMed membership. I am so grateful that my family is covered for the future."

Kevin added “We will NEVER be without an AirMed card.” Several of the Hutton’s family members are also new AirMed members.

When a business trip turns deadly: how one man made it home alive

Cliff Hawk, owner and president of Texas company KnightHawk Engineering shares the remarkable story of his near-death experience and the AirMed transport that helped get him the care he desperately needed.

"WHERE AM I?"

I suddenly awoke in a hospital bed and immediately noticed everyone was speaking in a language I did not understand. Then to my surprise my two boys and wife gathered around the bed side. I was on a ventilator and could not speak. My wife and sons started relaying the events that had occurred, starting with:

“You are in Seoul, South Korea in the University Hospital.” The story unfolded over the next week, and to this day, I can’t believe the story was about me and the struggle my family had.

Mr. Hawk shared this photo of him being taken aboard
AirMed's Hawker medical jet en route to Seoul, South Korea

Traveling for my company, Knighthawk, I arrived in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (UB) the capital city, at Genghis Khan Airport, then boarded a company plane for a 2.5 hour flight out into the Great Gobi Desert. The job site was at one of the largest copper and gold mines in the world. I started feeling under the weather, and the next morning I decided I better go to the site clinic. Within a matter of hours I had high fever, and it was decided that I must be air evacuated to a major clinic.

"I GOT WORSE."

All of my major organs began to shut down. The Mongolians called the U.S. embassy to start paperwork to transport my body to Houston. They told my wife and sons that I would die, but my wife and family refused to accept it.

My wife injected her knowledge with the help of Houston doctors into the situation.

Changes were made and against the Mongolian doctors’ advice, my wife and sons made the prayerfully thought out decision to life flight me via AirMed to Seoul, South Korea.

GETTING HOME VIA AN AIRMED PLANE

I arrived into Seoul at death’s door, and was immediately taken to the Seoul National University Hospital and put into the Intensive Care facility. I made it through the night and in four days had another major surgery. Soon, my vital signs went to normal, and the doctors said I could be medically evacuated back to Houston.

The last conversation with the doctors in Seoul the night before I left was surreal. “We have no idea why you are still on this earth and how you recovered.”

After six ambulance trips, two major surgeries and two air evacuations, I made it home to Houston alive. Study my story and realize that things can change in a moment. Thank you to AirMed and the rest of the people who helped to save my life.  --Cliff Hawk

Transporting a comatose patient, complicated issues arise

DULUTH, Minn. -- Pakistani officials agree with the family of comatose Pakistani student Muhammad Shahzaib Bajwa that he should remain at Essentia Health-St. Mary's Medical Center for treatment.

"That's what we have said is give this boy a chance, because definitely the medical facilities here are much better than in Pakistan," said Faisal Niaz Tirmizi, the Pakistani general consul in Chicago.

But as of Friday, exactly two weeks before Bajwa's student visa will expire, the U.S. State Department still hadn't answered the consulate's request that Bajwa's stay be extended until his condition stabilizes, Tirmizi said.

The recovery to that point could take more than a year, said Bajwa's brother, Shahraiz Bajwa, in an interview earlier this week.

Shahraiz, 22, who immediately flew to the United States from Pakistan after learning about the accident, wants his brother kept at St. Mary's because of the superior quality of care here, he said this week. But he's also concerned that his brother might not survive the long flight.

That's possible, an official for a company that specializes in such flights said.

"We don't have data about deaths in flights, but it has happened, yes," said Sarah Hanley, director of corporate communications for Alabama-based AirMed International.

AirMed, which transfers all international patients for the Mayo Clinic, has transported patients who were in comas, Hanley said. And distance is not an issue.

"We have transported patients from Minnesota to places such as Pakistan, or vice versa," Hanley said. "It is possible and done quite often, transports of that long-distance scope."

Read reporter John Lundy's Full Article here.

What if you need medical evacuation?

There isn't a traveler alive who thinks they will be calling an air ambulance at the beginning, middle or end of their trip.  Whether it's a business trip or a bucket list vacation, no one expects to have an accident or be struck with a serious illness while they are away from home. That is where AirMed comes in.

Your health and safety means the world to us

If you become ill or injured while traveling, AirMed will safely deliver you to the hospital of your choice. If you receive a serious health diagnosis and don’t know where to turn, AirMed is there for you, coordinating every aspect of a medical or second opinion referral. This and so much more is the assurance AirMed offers to our members. We strive to be more than just a card in your wallet; we are your peace of mind.

• We cover every trip you take even domestically.
• You don’t have to be critically ill or injured to qualify for a flight.
• There are no deductibles, claim forms or out of pocket expenses.
• Pre-existing conditions are accepted.
• There are no financial limitations for medical transports.

More than simple travel insurance

AirMed is an important enhancement to existing health and travel insurance. Most insurance policies focus on trip cancellation and lost luggage. AirMed focuses on taking care of your healthcare when you need us most. In other words, we save lives, not luggage.

AirMed memberships protect your most important asset: your health. In the midst of an emergency or serious medical diagnosis, reliability and cost should be your last concern. AirMed provides you access to an unsurpassed quality of care, every day of the year.  Find out more about air medical memberships that cover you for one trip or all year at airmed.com 

Transporting the Smallest Critical Patients

A Heart Full of Love and Hope

One of our tiniest and most critically ill patients teaches us all a lesson of the human spirit

In October of 2010, AirMed met a miracle.

Alexis Cormier of Hazel Green, Alabama, was born with HLHS, a rare congenital heart defect in which the left side of the heart is severely underdeveloped. It stands for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. At age 3, she underwent a third surgery to help her symptoms, but after this complicated surgery, her entire heart was damaged beyond repair. She was immediately put on ECMO.

ECMO is a highly specialized treatment that stands for Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation. It is similar to a heart-lung machine and in effect, it removes the blood from the patient,

The tiny patient seen among her life saving equipment
before the first air medical ECMO transport

oxygenates it outside of the body (removing carbon dioxide and adding oxygen) and then replaces it back into the patient. AirMed has the capability of transporting ECMO patients and all of the complicated equipment from one hospital to another’s critical care program. AirMed is one of only a handful of air ambulance programs in the world capable of this type of transport for both pediatric and adult patients.

After being placed on ECMO, Alexis’ hospital in Memphis requested she be moved to Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville, and AirMed’s ECMO transport team was called into action.

Just four days after her first ECMO transport flight, it was decided that Alexis needed to be transported again, this time to UAB Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama, where she would receive a Berlin (artificial) heart.

Once more, the AirMed teams transported Alexis with their specialized ECMO equipment to UAB. This 3 year old who had struggled so much already in her short lifetime looked so small and helpless amidst all of the equipment. Her family held out for a miracle, but her will was strong and would not be denied.

Only four weeks later, members of the AirMed transport team traveled to UAB Hospital to find Alexis standing, smiling, brushing her teeth and splashing in the water at her hospital room sink. The only outward signs of any illness were a small feeding tube and two catheters under her clothing, connected at her lower abdomen. These catheters supply blood to her Berlin heart and return it to her circulatory system.

The Berlin heart device works by helping the right ventricle of the heart to pump blood to the lungs and the left ventricle to pump blood to the body. The bulk of the device is extracorporeal (outside the body); only the tubes are implanted. They emerge from small openings to enter the pump, a small round chamber, and the system is run by a laptop computer. 

The Berlin Heart is intended to be used as a bridge to recovery or as a bridge to a transplant, which Alexis required. She was listed as 1-A on the nationwide heart recipient list, meaning she was among the top pediatric priorities. 

Within a year, Alexis was undergoing a full blown heart transplant and now, in 2013, she is a thriving and active first grader. 

Every one of us at AirMed International is grateful to be able to touch a life such as Alexis Cormier’s during our day to day duties.

Become an AirMed member and visit airmed.com. 

Communication is Key-- But So is Training!

AirMed Communications Supervisor Aaron Bowles receives a plaque from the National Association of Air Medical Communications Specialists (NAACS) to recognize the extraordinary training and enrichment efforts in the AirMed International call center. AirMed comm center reps have all taken the NAACS course to much success.

Congratulations, team!

Medical Transportation to Cincinnati Children's Hospital

Medical Transportation to Cincinnati Children's Hospital

AirMed serves as the primary fixed wing vendor for the acclaimed Cincinnati Children's Hospital, which provides a wide range of clinical services and pediatric care specialists dedicated to improving the health of children.  Our fixed wing medical aircraft is available to them as they transport young patients from across the United States to their facilities.

Their pediatric urgent care specialists are nationally recognized for medical excellence; U.S. News & World Report ranked Cincinnati Children’s No. 3 in the nation in the magazine’s 2013-2014 list of the best children’s hospitals.

Shown here is one of Cincinnati Children's isolettes used in transport flights.

"We appreciate the professionalism displayed by everyone at the AirMed organization. Your attention to even the smallest details during flight operations is invaluable to our teams. As the primary vendor for Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC), AirMed continues to meet and exceed our standards of service,"  a quote from the clinical director CCHMC Transport Program.

The critical-care transport team uses the most up-to-date equipment, including invasive and non-invasive cardio-respiratory monitoring, transport nitric oxide, newborn and pediatric ventilators, emergency medications, chest drainage systems and cervical spine immobilization equipment. 

CCHMC teams train alongside AirMed medical and flight staff on fire safety, water safety, altitude physiology and stressors of flight which provides much needed communication to keep every transport running smoothly.

Inside the World of an International Flight Dispatcher

Dispatches from the Air Medical Field

The dispatchers at AirMed have their fingerprints all over flight operations for the company. Lead Dispatcher Jason Garcia took some time to tell us about the department and their important part of the air medical process.

by Jason Garcia
Lead Dispatcher at AirMed International

I actually had never heard of flight dispatching until a few months before I was enrolled in a flight dispatch class working on my certification. Fresh out of the Army and living off the generosity of relatives, I somehow completed the course with no problems and found myself looking for my first job as a flight dispatcher in the wake of 9/11. I had received my dispatch license only one week prior to September 11, 2001. After stints in Wichita and Cleveland, I came to AirMed in 2004 and have been here ever since.

Dispatchers deal with weather, air traffic, visibility issues,

customs issues, flight planning, pilot staffing, and

have a host of other unsung talents that help AirMed's

air medical flights operate smoothly.

AirMed dispatch combines every possible aspect of planning and logistics for our long-distance and domestic medical transports. Besides the flight planning and weather checking, we spend much of our time dealing with foreign handlers and customs agents all over the USA and abroad.

In today’s modern aviation environment there exists a huge list of little things you need to keep track of in order for trips to run smoothly. I have described my team of dispatchers as the busy legs that keep the duck looking so serene and relaxed on the pond…only this pond is full of alligators, red tape and rapidly changing requirements from other countries. Needless to say, I rely heavily on local handling agents to keep everything running properly and to make sure that our patients are brought safely home and that we exceed all their expectations.

Here at AirMed we only hire certified Part 121 flight dispatchers. That means they have passed the FAA Flight Dispatcher’s course and have been issued an FAA dispatcher license. The course includes classes on flight planning, aircraft performance and lots of instruction on reading weather forecast and condition reports. That sounds simple enough, but no one breezes through Dispatch School, and it is not uncommon for people to know the exact score they received on the final exam literally decades after taking the test. (I got a 92.)

Being a successful flight dispatcher requires a few other talents. All good dispatchers are organized and use their experience to plan ahead a few steps. I can always tell when a new dispatcher is progressing well in their training by the level of questions they ask. Not the number of questions, but rather the complexity of the question, such as how a single aspect of a trip can affect the success of the trip as a whole.

In the end though, every trip is different. To be successful, I am constantly rolling with the punches and playing them as I see fit. Sometimes I believe that I can expect a day where there could be no surprises and have it complicated with a typhoon or Israeli sorties in Lebanon or both. In those cases, a sense of humor may be a dispatcher’s most valuable commodity.

Over the years I have learned that no matter how deep the hole I find myself standing in, I always somehow find a way to make things all work out. Focusing on the trip and reminding myself and the dispatchers that someone is relying on our team to get them home after they hurt themselves while far from home is paramount. “Who better than me to get this person home to their family.” I actually say that to myself sometimes, and it works.

When the patient is delivered and the crew is on their way back to our home base, I enjoy a victory meal. The McDonalds by my house is open all night...they know me.

How many travelers require emergency care?

It Happens More Than You Would Think

AirMed is an important enhancement to existing health and travel insurance. Most insurance policies focus on trip cancellation and lost luggage. AirMed focuses on taking care of your family when you need us the most. In other words, we save lives, not luggage.

As an AirMed member, you will receive air medical transportation from any point on the globe if you are ill or injured while away from home. Find out complete details for your family, at airmed.com. 

Worldwide Heart Attack Stats

Heart Failure Can Happen Anywhere

AirMed memberships will bring you home to the hospital of your choice if you are hospitalized while away from home. Find out complete details for your family, at airmed.com. 

Travel with the Facts: Dangers of Driving at Night

Be Careful of Your Surroundings in the Late Hours!

Always Drive Responsibly

Ninety percent of a driver's reaction depends on vision, and vision is severely limited at night. Depth perception, color recognition, and peripheral vision are compromised after sundown. Older drivers have even greater difficulties seeing at night. A 50-year-old driver may need twice as much light to see as well as a 30-year old. 

Traffic crashes that include at least one driver or motorcycle operator with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 g/dl or greater account for about 32% of total traffic fatalities. That makes weekend nights more dangerous. More fatal crashes take place on weekend nights than at any other time in the week.

AirMed memberships will bring you home to the hospital of your choice if you are injured while away from home. Find out complete details for your family at airmed.com. 

Being a Flight Nurse Saved My Life

"Love and compassion know no language, no one country."

Thibault, seen here on a desert tour in Abu Dhabi.

Jenni Thibault was a registered nurse in a small town. When she became a flight nurse for AirMed International, her world changed forever. She shares her well-traveled story with us.

Coming from a small, Southern town of less than 13,000 people was a blessing and a curse. I woke up everyday surrounded by the most amazing family and friends, worked in a hospital beside people I had trusted my entire life, some of them were the nurses and doctors who cared for my mother following my birth. Life was easy. Hardly exciting, but it was picturesque and representative of every small town and the slow paced life it has to offer.

Now the curse: 13,000 people. I repeat, 13,000 people. There are apartment complexes in Hong Kong with ten times that many people in a city block or two. How do I know this? Because my ever-moving, ever-changing family lives there. The adventurous side of the family, anyway.

It only took one time visiting to fall in love with Asia. The many cultures represented by the melting pot of nationalities and cultures in Hong Kong blew me away. I would go home to 13,000 people and want more, and then one day opportunity knocked. So, I packed my bags, went through training, and moved to Hong Kong to become a flight nurse with AirMed. I knew that if I didn't go, I’d regret it.

Wait. I'm the team?

Thibault's extraordinary photo of Big Ben

During my flight nurse training, I was reminded of things I hadn't reviewed since nursing school and scared mindless at the possibility of someone crashing on me at 40,000 feet and with no “code team.” 

Wait. I’m the team? Me and just one other person? I quickly learned to love the thrill and the opportunity to restore a person’s faith over an ocean, on their way home, and often following a tragic event.

After coming out of the initial, almost immobilizing, fear of being “alone” in the sky with a critical patient, I started to see the world. In one year, I filled an entire passport. A few months later, my extra pages were a quarter of the way filled.

I've ridden camels in Abu Dhabi, seen Big Ben at a very late evening sunset, stood at the base of a 112 foot tall bronze Buddha in Hong Kong, gotten a sunburn in the Philippines, and stood in front of Vasco de Gama’s tomb in historic Belem, Portugal. That is just off the top of my head. The countries and cities visited are too many to list.

Left: Lantau Peak in Hong Kong;  Right: Fenway Park in Boston

So, as if being a nurse wasn’t enough of a rewarding career, I get to see the world at the same time. In any setting I find myself in, I get to be the person that patients trust. I am able to be a part of their lives when they are most vulnerable, and they want me there. Most people cannot even say that about loved ones or family members, and I get to say it about complete strangers every single time I go to work. 

It quickly becomes evident that there are no strangers on medical flights, not for long anyway.

As an international flight nurse, I see the world through the love of a Muslim for his child, the patience of a Buddhist when travel logistics aren’t perfect, and the empathy of Christian giving up her seat for a sicker person. People say it is such a big world, that people are so different. Maybe we aren’t all that different. 

Thibault (left) and colleague
in Lisbon, Portugal.

I’ve come so far from my 13,000 person town, but I know that when things go wrong, love and compassion know no language, no religion and no one country.

---------------

Jenni Thibault, RN
AirMed International Flight Nurse

Find out more about AirMed memberships which get you home if you are ill or injured while traveling anywhere in the world at airmed.com. 

Vintage Air Ambulance PBM-3S Mariner

 Nostalgic About Air Ambulances? 

Early Emergency Air Evacuation

Wartime publicity photo highlighting the air evacuation capabilities of the PBM-3S Mariner.  From humble beginnings...

Check Out Our Updated Fleet

Find out more about the latest in fixed wing air ambulance transportation by visiting us at airmed.com. 

Air Medical Transport Facts from AirMed

Get to know about air medical transports with AirMed

FACT:  80% of AirMed transports are within the continental United States

• We own our own aircraft; all aviation and medical personnel are AirMed employees. Complete vertical integration sets us apart in the industry, in fact, most travel insurers call on us to move their patients.
• With AirMed, the choice is always yours. Travel insurance will not get you home, only to the ‘nearest appropriate facility’ chosen by them. AirMed brings you home, to your doctor, your family, where you want to be.

FACT: The cost of a regional medical transport is approximately $22,000. The cost of an international transport can rise above $200,000.

FOLLOW UP FACT: 100% of our patients who have had to pay this full bill immediately become AirMed members when they return home. Retail cost of an annual AirMed individual membership: $265.

• Saving lives and bringing you home. AirMed brings you back home to your local hospital or to the hospital of your choice. Think your health insurance will cover air medical transportation? It won’t.

FACT: 25% of all AirMed member transports are to specialty facilities.

• Evacuation and Repatriation from any point on the globe, even as close as 150 miles from home
• Domestic Transports if you need specialized treatment at a hospital in another city
• 24/7 Medical Hotline for emergency physician consultation while traveling

For more information, check out AirMed.com

Larger air ambulance jets offer room for two patients

There's Room for Two in Our Air Medical Transports

Most fixed-wing air ambulances do not have room for more than one patient,
but AirMed's Hawker 800 has two patient capabilities, which can be
vital in obstetrics cases and many other critical care situations.

Visit airmed.com for more information on air ambulance capabilities.

Air medical accreditation from CAMTS focuses on patient care and safety in medical transports

AirMed's Medical Transports Are Fully Accredited

The Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Services (CAMTS) is comprised of 20 non-profit member organizations. Its mission is to promote the improvement of medical transport services quality and safety within the emergency medical transport community. AirMed has maintained accreditation since 1998.

CAMTS offers a voluntary evaluation of compliance with accreditation standards targeting areas of patient care and safety in the medical transport environment to Fixed Wing, Rotor Wing, Ground, and Commercial Medical Escort transport providers. Each standard is supported by measurable criteria to appraise the quality of service provided by the program.

As reflected on the CAMTS website, Accreditation Standards are periodically revised to reflect the dynamic, changing environment of medical transport, The Accreditation Standards are developed with considerable input from all disciplines of the medical profession and serve as a marker of excellence for federal, state, and local governmental agencies, as well as private agencies and the general public. AirMed’s leadership team regularly refers to these standards in setting priorities, assigning resources, implementing policies and procedures, and understanding industry expectations for all aspects of the company.

Regarded as a leader in the industry for long-range evacuation transports, AirMed has been a featured program on the CAMTS website and has receiving accolades by CAMTS for “continued operational excellence” with several of AirMed’s policies and procedures being cited as Best Practices in the CAMTS Best Practices for the past two publications. While CAMTS may be required to fulfill various state regulations and contractual mandates, we feel strongly that this should not be the primary goal for achieving and maintaining accreditation. CAMTS accreditation is essential to our members, customers, employees and our company. AirMed’s commitment to the accreditation process for both critical care air medical transport and commercial medical escorts reflects our dedication to excellence.

AirMed is the only air ambulance company in the world fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems (CAMTS), the European Aero-Medical Institute (EURAMI), and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). These strict accreditation standards ensure the utmost safety, covering every part of the AirMed operation from patient medical care to aircraft certifications and ongoing safety. Find out more at airmed.com.

AirMed ECMO program continues its success

AirMed: Patient Transport for ECMO 

AirMed continues to be one of only a handful of air ambulance programs in the world capable of ECMO transport for both pediatric and adult patients. Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation, or ECMO, is a complicated life-saving treatment similar to a heart-lung machine.

“We have received a tremendous response from the medical community across the country at the growth our ECMO program and the level of care and safety that we provide each individual patient,” said AirMed’s Mike Key, director of business development. “We are honored to be a crucial resource to the ECMO community and to play a small part in delivering these critically ill patients to life-saving facilities.”

The basic framework of ECMO involves removing the blood from the patient, oxygenating it outside of the body (removing the carbon dioxide and adding oxygen), and then replacing it back into the patient. On its fleet of medical aircraft, AirMed has the capability of transporting ECMO patients and their complicated equipment from one hospital to another’s critical care program.

AirMed’s Hawker 800 aircraft is up to three times larger than the planes used by 99% of other air ambulance companies. In conjunction with teams from ECMO Advantage, AirMed’s medical staff undergoes extensive ECMO training in order to treat patients whose conditions include both congenital and acute cardiac and respiratory failure.

AirMed offers comfort to family of a young burn victim with a medical flight to remember

A medical flight to remember

"It was such an ordinary day."  Britta Ann Meadows describes the morning her 22-month old son, Joshua, was finishing his breakfast. "I was tidying up the kitchen and turned my back. In that second, he’d reached from his highchair and pulled our water distiller down on top of himself.

"The bitter irony--the one thing we do to make us healthier harmed my baby; and I was so sure he would not be able to reach it or the cord." But reach it he did. Joshua suffered third-degree burns on more than 30 percent of his body from the boiling water.

In a fog of disbelief, shock, guilt, and the terror a parent feels when their child is suffering, Britta Ann and her husband David were told by first responders that their baby needed to be flown by helicopter from their small central Kansas town to a bigger hospital in Kansas City. "And I couldn’t even go with him…they had to fly him out by himself in the helicopter."

Once at the Kansas City hospital, the Meadows waited to see their baby and to hear what the doctors would tell them. "I was pretty sure I was calmly listening, but it caught me by surprise when they said 'Cincinnati.' It seemed matter of fact, but then, wait…Ohio?? Away from our home, my family?"

The best course of treatment for Joshua was at the renowned Cincinnati Shriners Hospital, and the short one-hour flight could not have seemed more distant to the distraught family.

"AirMed's compassion, respect, and complete ability to care for my child was something I will never forget."

Mrs. Meadows continued, "Realizing I really had no choice--we had to do what was best for Joshua, bravely and trusting God, no matter where that took us and that’s what I wanted to do--I quickly adjusted to another level of motherhood: I had better be able to stay with my child. Before I even asked, they answered my question; yes, one parent could accompany Joshua on the AirMed plane."

The small amount of relief available in that moment flooded through, knowing she would not be separated from Joshua again. All of the flight details were coordinated for the family by AirMed and the hospital staffs. "I was so thankful. I would not have known where to begin!"

"That night, the longest night of my life, the whole AirMed crew worked efficiently and calmly doing their jobs even among my constant questions. I rode on a stretcher for the first time in my life. It seemed the easiest way to calmly transport Joshua, and to hold my baby was exactly what we both needed," Britta Ann continued. "AirMed's compassion, respect, and complete ability to care for my child was something I will never forget."

After landing from the medical flight, the Meadows traveled by ground ambulance to Cincinnati Shriners, and the AirMed team led them to their room to say goodbye. "I felt like they were friends not strangers. They were a lifeline, and it was scary to say goodbye. But they had done their part, and now it was time for the Shriners doctors and nurses to do theirs." AirMed's Family Plans ensure the highest level of comfort.

Cincinnati Shriners Hospital for Children is one of the nation's leading burn care centers and is designed to allow children to recover in a safe, fun and friendly environment.

Mark Washam, director of clinical services at Cincinnati Shriners, commented, "We are always extremely pleased to work with AirMed because we know our patients will be given the highest level of care on their way to us." 

Joshua underwent two successful skin graft surgeries and was soon on his way back home to Kansas where he would continue his recovery and celebrate his 2nd Birthday.

"I was (and am) so grateful for AirMed and the team we had that night. They were the link from Kansas to Ohio who got Joshua there quickly and safely, while reassuring a confused, scared mother who was wracked with guilt...Why had I turned my back? Why had this happened, why, why? They helped me feel in control, assured, confident, and free of guilt. Truly, they helped me set me back on my track of motherhood."

Now back home in Kansas and almost fully healed, Joshua has adjusted well to his ongoing therapy of massages and stretches after his surgeries. He remains eager to learn and spends his time smiling, playing, laughing and giving hugs to all the new people he meets. "Nothing phases him apparently. He is back to his old self--except new and improved," says his mother.

"AirMed was a wonderful gift from God, a lifeline and reassurance of hope during our family’s most traumatic experience," Britta Ann Meadows concluded. "Thank you, AirMed!"

For more information about AirMed's medical capabilities or to remind fellow travelers how to become an AirMed member, visit our website airmed.com.

To find out more about the remarkable work done by the Shriners Hospitals for Children - Cincinnati, visit their site.

AirMed's Air Medical Transport Comes With Experience

Who flew the first heart transplant patient in the Southeast?

Answer:  Jeffrey T. Tolbert

In 1982, Captain Jeff Tolbert, founder and CEO of AirMed International, identified a need for dedicated fixed-wing medical air service after he flew the first heart transplant patient in the Southeastern United States to UAB Medical Center. 

In 1983, Tolbert was the first in the U.S. to operate civilian jet aircraft equipped exclusively for medical transportation and also operated the first civilian aircraft equipped with a medical liquid-oxygen system.

In 1991, Tolbert pioneered the concept of offering medical air evacuation membership coverage to U.S. citizens and corporations after a client suffered financial hardship paying for his son’s evacuation from Afghanistan. Shortly thereafter, Alabama native Tolbert founded the Birmingham-based company, MEDJet. 

In 1998, this company split into two distinct companies, MEDjet Assistance and MEDjet International with Tolbert heading up the latter. In an effort to alleviate confusion and to better serve our customers, MEDjet International was renamed AirMed International LLC in 2003. Based on Tolbert’s vision, AirMed quickly grew to become the country’s premier air ambulance service. It is privately owned and operated.

AirMed operates two distinct lines of business: a fee-for-service air medical transport program and a prepaid membership program. Both provide air ambulance services to patients anywhere in the world.

AirMed Beechjet Fixed Wing Air Ambulance

AirMed Medical Fleets Are Top of the Line

Take a trip inside (and out!) of our Beechjet 400 air ambulance. AirMed has two Beechjet aircraft which are based in Rochester and Minnesota to support Mayo Clinic and their critical care transport program, Mayo MedAir, as well as other prominent programs in the region.  

This is just one of AirMed's fleet of medical jets.