Concierge nursing services provide patients personalized care without them having to visit a doctor or hospital. These services include consultation on medical issues, home health services after surgery and post-op travelcare.
While most associate concierge nursing services with in home care, non-emergency medical transport companies like Flying Angels provide medical travel with a registered nurse which makes travel safer and easier. With bedside to bedside care, clients and their families have peace of mind while they travel with a flight nurse throughout their journey.
For those who have undergone a medical procedure and need to travel, concierge nursing services provide the support they need to make a trip safely. RN Flight Coordinators help make travel arrangements that address a number of individual concerns and limitations.
Some of the duties that are part of a day in the life of a flight nurse include the following.
Packing and managing a medical kit that includes everything they need, including specialty reclining wheelchairs, oxygen equipment, suction and nebulizers
Making sure patients meet all pre-planned points along the trip. Nurses also meet with patients the day before departure to go over the plan and make sure everything is in order
Flight nurses with Flying Angels are trained in flight physiology, and have extensive experience in air travel and the complexities involved getting through the check-in process, security, and customs and immigration for international flights
Flight nurses ensure patients disembark and reach their final destinations safely
Other concierge nursing services include a wide variety of situations. Most fall within one of the following categories.
Consultations
Concierge nurses will speak with patients directly about any health issues they are having and determine whether they need further medical care. This can help people avoid the cost and stress of unneeded trips to the doctor or hospital. An example of this type of service is Aging Life Care (ACLA), which offers a client-centered approach to those facing health challenges, including seniors. They provide guidance to families and individuals in making decisions that lead to a higher quality of life and the best care possible for loved ones.
Wellness Support
In some cases, concierge nurses will come to your home and provide consultation and care. They also can educate clients on how to properly use whatever medical equipment they need, all to help patients maintain their independence and stay at home.
Patient Advocacy
Concierge nursing also can include patient advocacy, acting as a “middle person” between the patient and clinicians at hospitals and other facilities. In this role, a concierge nurse focuses on ensuring that medical professionals meet a patient’s needs and answer their questions.
Respite Care
In these situations, nurses act as caregivers, giving patients time to recover and take a break. This service is especially useful for those recovering from surgery. These services also are offered for those who are bed-bound or wheelchair-bound. Nurses can help them with a range of motion exercises, among other issues.
Concierge nursing services make a significant difference for those who need help during post-op travel, as well as with wellness support, advocacy and respite care. The important thing to remember is that you are not alone, and concierge nurses can provide the help you need.
Most people travelling with cancer do so during breaks in their treatments. However, if an emergency or other situation requires you to fly during chemotherapy, you can safely do so by following a doctor’s advice, taking extra medication with you, knowing where to get care at every point along the trip and arranging for a medical professional to travel with you.
All these tips can help you fly during chemotherapy, even if it is not the optimum situation for you. In some cases, it’s best to approach these types of trips as you would critical care travel and ensure that you have an experienced nurse on hand throughout your trip.
The following tips can help you fly during chemotherapy without regretting the experience.
Consult With Your Doctor
The first step is to talk with your doctor and get her OK to fly. Your physician also will have suggestions and ideas that can help make the trip go more smoothly. Go into the meeting with your doctor prepared with all the details of your trip, including information about your planned methods of transportation and the access to medical care at your destination.
Whatever medications you are taking during chemotherapy, make sure you have a plentiful supply before you get on the plane. Keep the medications with you rather than putting them in checked baggage. Also, keep a copy of your prescription with you, which will make it easier to refill if your medication gets lost.
Travel With A Flight Nurse
Flight nurses have experience in providing medical care in high-altitude environments. Those who work with a non-emergency medical flight company can help you book your trip as well as provide medical care from the moment you leave your house until you reach your destination. People use flight nurses for everything from holiday travel to post-surgery travel or just for the safety of having a medical professional on hand.
Don’t start your trip without knowing where you can find medical care along every point of your trip. That includes the nearest hospitals and clinics near where you plan to stay. Make sure to check with your insurance company and ensure you are covered if you need to get medical services during your trip – they may require that you see a specific physician or go to a specific hospital.
People who travel with cancer need to rest during their trip. It’s important to plan ahead and give yourself time for long breaks so you can recharge your batteries. That will make the time when you are on the move and with others that much more enjoyable. By keeping these tips in mind, you can fly during chemotherapy. But always remember to keep your care and health top of mind. When travelling with cancer, your well-being must come first.
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.
