Flying is generally considered safe for those who have had a heart attack. However, for those who want to fly after a heart attack, it’s important to consider issues such as your current condition, the time since the heart attack and the type of equipment and medications you take.
Those with heart issues also can take actions that help make the flight easier, such as picking the right seat and knowing what to expect at security.
A solution for many is to have a trained flight nurse fly with them, especially if they want to fly after a heart attack or fly after a stroke. A trained nurse can provide all the care someone may need during the flight and they have experience in handling any issues that might arise.
The American Heart Association (AHA) reports that flying doesn’t need to be off limits for those with heart disease or who have had a heart attack or stroke. “In fact, a few simple precautions can help make your trip a smooth one,” the AHA writes.
Issues When You Fly After a Heart Attack
The following looks at some issues to keep in mind if you want to fly after a heart attack. By preparing in advance and getting the support you need, flying after a heart attack should not cause any issues.
How Long Ago Was The Heart Attack?
The length of time since the heart attack, and the severity of the heart attack, are two issues people should consider. There’s no set rule, but Web MD reports that most doctors advise waiting two weeks after a heart attack before flying. Most people also wait one week after having angioplasty.
What Is Your Current Condition?
If you visit a doctor before taking a flight, they will likely check for certain issues to gauge your current heart health. This includes blood pressure and whether you are experiencing an irregular heartbeat or chest pain. They may also check your oxygen blood level. Depending on the results of these tests, a doctor may adjust your medications before the flight.
What Type of Medication and Equipment Do You Need?
Planning and arriving early can save you headaches at the airport. In terms of equipment, it’s safe to fly with a pacemaker or defibrillator, but security equipment can interfere with the devices’ function, so alert security personnel in advance. Also, if you need to carry liquid medications or extra oxygen, get a document from your doctor that states you need to carry them on the plane with you.
In addition to the above issues, it’s also smart to have a checklist that includes the following.
Take all medications on the flight and have them within easy reach
Carry a list of your medications with you
Carry contact information for your family and your doctor
Request an aisle seat so you can stand and stretch your legs every so often, as well as easily get to the bathroom
Ask your doctor if you should wear compression socks that will help your blood circulate even as you sit in one position for a long period of time
Medical Transportation Assistance
Some who have suffered a heart attack prefer to have a medical professional fly with them to manage their health needs. This kind of service is referred to as non-emergency medical transport or medical transportation. This service provides the comfort of having an experienced flight nurse with you and oversee your care during the flight.
An example of a medical transportation service is Flying Angels which sends a nurse with you on your trip. A flight nurse provides care at high altitudes and is specially trained in aviation physiology. An RN Flight Coordinator handles all the travel arrangements for you and your loved ones to ensure the entire trip is comfortable and safe. Most people who have suffered a heart attack can fly safely if they follow these precautions. Make sure to consult with your doctor and a medical transport company before your flight. That way, you ensure that you take the proper steps before and during your journey.
Medical repatriation companies return someone to their home country when they experience injuries, illness or trauma while abroad. Knowing how to find medical repatriation companies is critical to getting back home safely before time spent dealing with hospitals, doctors and insurance companies takes a toll on a person’s health and finances.
Medical repatriation involves making sometimes complex transportation arrangements, such as on a commercial airline with a trained RN flight nurse, and ensuring the safe transfer of the patient back to their home country. The first and foremost goal is to facilitate the return of the patient to their home country for appropriate medical treatment.
When trying to find medical repatriation companies, the key is to act quickly. They can provide the support you need to clear hurdles and get you back home to the care of your own doctors. The following medical tips can help you find medical repatriation companies and understand how they can help.
What Kind of Company Does Medical Repatriation?
When trying to find medical repatriation companies, you want to find a non-emergency medical transport (NEMT) service. NEMT companies specialize in transporting patients on commercial airlines with trained flight nurses who manage their care during the flight. A high quality NEMT company also will book flights and other travel arrangements on the patient’s behalf with airlines and airports.
The right NEMT company will work with an insurance provider to verify if a patient qualifies for medical repatriation, handle communications with foreign medical staff and officials and properly complete all paperwork. They also consult with clinical staff at the hospital to ensure a patient is stable enough to fly.
Flying Angels has years of experience in providing medical repatriation, as well as many other medical transport services.
The Challenges of Medical Repatriation
People hire a reputable NEMT company because of the challenges in leaving a foreign country to return home when you have required medical attention. When searching for medical repatriation companies, look for companies who understand how to manage the following challenges.
Insurance Coverage
American tourists on vacation don’t typically plan for an emergency and do not know if they have coverage for medical repatriation. The first step an NEMT company will take is to find out what is covered under a person’s insurance. That can get complicated. For example, some insurance does not cover air medical, and some may cover transfer to a higher level of care, but not back to their nation of origin. Also, even if insurance does cover medical repatriation, it may only cover return to the nearest U.S. airport, not the patient’s home city.
If insurance does not cover air medical, then some types of travel insurance and some high-level credit cards may offer coverage. Experienced NEMT companies have untangled these insurance knots many times before.
Logistical Challenges
Coordinating transportation back home on commercial flights and ensuring patients have all the required services they need at airports and on their flights can become a complex task, especially if the patient is in a remote location. Ensuring the availability of appropriate transportation, arranging any necessary accommodations with foreign health officials and airlines, and coordinating with healthcare providers in both the current location and the home country offer logistical challenges. NEMT companies offer the skills and experience needed to overcome those challenges.
Language Barriers
Simply communicating can prove difficult in non-English speaking countries. This can create delays in getting a patient transferred. In the worst cases, communication gaps can result in patients not getting the level of treatment they need. Poor communication also can lead to people not understanding local regulations that may allow hospitals to charge them far more than they realize. An experienced medical travel company will have contacts in the area and work with translators to ensure everyone is on the same page for treatment and transfer.
Choosing a Receiving Facility
Patients returning to the U.S. may have difficulty in getting transport to the receiving facility they want. NEMT companies will have a list of medical facilities where they have contacts and work to get patients transferred to a facility that offers the type of care they need. They also will have a list of alternative medical flight destinations.
Healthcare System Differences
The healthcare system in the home country may differ significantly from the one where the patient is currently located. Finding suitable medical facilities can pose challenges. Also, in some cases it’s necessary to obtain necessary medical documentation and clearances for repatriation. This may involve coordinating with treating physicians, obtaining medical records and ensuring that the patient meets the requirements for travel.
The Patient’s Medical Condition
Medical transport companies should provide a trained flight nurse to travel with patients on their trip. Flight nurses have experience and training in performing medical services at high altitudes and should have expert knowledge of aviation physiology. They also manage medications or medical equipment needed during the flight. These registered nurses consult with medical personnel where the patient is getting treatment to understand their current condition. They also notify the receiving facility about the patient, so they are accepted for treatment.
When it comes to finding medical repatriation companies, time is of the essence. People who need medical repatriation want to move as fast as possible to get back home under the care of doctors they know. Hiring a professional medical repatriation company can get patients through the process faster and safer.
Many stroke survivors worry about if and when they can fly after a stroke. Medical research shows a person can fly after a stroke, but they should consider the type of stroke they had, how long it’s been since the stroke and whether they want medical travel assistance during the flight.
If you plan to travel after having a stroke, it’s comforting to know that research has found having a history of a stroke does not put a person in danger during an airline flight. Having a past stroke does not mean a person should not fly.
But if a stroke has been more recent or a person simply has concerns about flying, they should consider several factors before booking their trip.
Strokes vary in type and severity. Stroke victims should consider their own unique circumstances. Experts do not have hard and fast rules that apply to everyone who has had a stroke. But the following factors can help you decide about flying.
Type of Stroke
The advice on when to fly could depend on the stroke. A full stroke involves the sudden loss of blood flow to the brain. However, many people experience a transient ischemic attack (TIA), which is known as a “mini-stroke” that resolves without permanent brain damage.
A TIA is like a stroke and considered a warning sign of stroke risk. Also, some medical disorders that lead to a TIA could pose a “very small risk” on flights, according to research compiled by Very Well Health. Those conditions include patent foramen ovale, paradoxical embolism or hypercoagulability. It’s important to know if you have those conditions.
Experts may vary on when they recommend you can fly. The Stroke Association recommends that it is “probably best to avoid flying for the first two weeks. This is the time when your problems are likely to be most severe and other conditions related to your stroke may come up.”
In the most severe stroke cases, patients may want to wait as long as three months. However, with a TIA, many people are safe to fly in 10 days.
Before booking a flight, people should consult with their doctor.
Some people who have had a stroke may prefer to hire medical professionals to fly with them. Doing so provides them a high degree of security in making the flight and ensures they get proper medical care if needed. Such help is found with non-emergency transport (NEMT) companies like Flying Angels.
Flying Angels provides a number of services that can support stroke victims when they fly. A Flight Coordinator books your flight, sets up all the arrangements with both airports and airlines, gets you through security and provides a flight nurse to help you throughout your journey. The company hires only nurses with a great deal of experience working in emergency rooms and who have training in providing medical care at high altitudes.
Stroke survivors may face challenges, but they still can live a full life. As with any serious condition, those who have had a stroke need to practice patience and planning. Travel by flight is certainly doable if they have the right amount of support. Consulting with a doctor and a medical transport service can give people the answers they seek about flying after a stroke. They also can provide the comfort, care and support they need to make the journey.
Join Flying Angels in their tribute to the American Case Management (ACMA) Conference. After attending ACMA Conferences for the past three years, Flying Angels would have reached their 50th, but sadly it will have to wait… But We’ll Meet Again!
Hospital discharge transportation involves the methods used to transport a patient from the hospital to their home, a rehabilitation center, nursing home or other care facility. How hospitals and patients handle hospital discharge transportation is a key element to the success of overall medical treatment.
It’s an issue that all healthcare providers address. Hospital discharge transportation is seen as part of a comprehensive approach to patient care. That applies whether the patient needs medical transportation home or to another facility.
In some cases, transportation may involve having to fly commercial after surgery. This happens when patients are injured while on business travel or vacation. It also is necessary for those who must fly to get care from a specialist surgeon.
Medical professionals put a great deal of focus on discharge planning process because transportation from a care facility is a time when people are vulnerable. Every detail of hospital discharge transportation focuses on patient safety, including medical transportation home.
Also, effective discharge lowers the chance of a patient returning to the hospital because patients and their families are prepared for the transition. That’s why addressing the patient’s traveling requirements is critical.
In situations where flying is involved, hiring a non-emergency medical transport service is often the right move. They provide service that includes making all travel arrangements, including ground transportation, navigating the airport and flight reservations.
They also provide a flight nurse who is certified in aviation physiology and can handle any medical situations that may arise while in the air.
When working on discharge planning, medical staff find the best way to provide a smooth transition from one facility to another, or to the patient’s home. Only doctors can authorize discharge from a hospital. However, social workers, case managers or nurses often oversee discharge planning.
According to the National Center on Caregiving (NCC), discharge planning revolves around the following issues.
Evaluation. Qualified personnel evaluate the patient’s condition.
Discussion. A patient or her representative discuss discharge with qualified personnel
Planning. Plan revolves around either going home or to another institution.
Determining. Qualified personnel determine whether the patient’s caregiver needs training or other support
Referrals. The medical facility refers the patient to the appropriate support service, such as a home health agency
Follow up. Discharge planning also involves making arrangements for follow-up appointments or tests for the patient.
Many medical facilities continue to work in this critical area, so it’s important for patients to know their options and the challenges involved with discharge. For example, research reported by the NCC indicates about 40% of patients over the age of 65 had medication errors upon release from the hospital. Also, about 18% of Medicare patients discharged from hospitals are readmitted within 30 days. Those numbers underscore the importance of hospital discharge transportation. For patients who know they have an upcoming hospital stay, all options – including non-emergency medical transportation – should be investigated.
On May 7th Flying Angels had the honor of accompanying Sandi Greenawalt RN CCM, Director of Case Management, Jackson Hospital, Montgomery, AL home to Sewickley. You would not believe the sendoff the hospital gave sandy.
Flying Angels Accompanying Sandi Greenawalt on Here Journey Home After Battling Covid-19
