Aviation medicine
Royal Med plays vital role in patient aero transport
Since its establishment five years ago, Abu Dhabi-based Royal Med has
played an important role in patient transfers from the region to
specialist hospitals around the world. Middle East Health speaks to
Dr Frank Porter, the recently appointed Medical Director of Royal
Med.
Middle East Health: Can
you give Middle East Health
some background about Royal
Med. When was it established?
Why was it established?
How big is the fleet?
■ Dr Frank Porter: Aeromedical evacuation in the
UAE was originally undertaken
by the Amiri Flight of
Abu Dhabi, a government
organisation servicing the
Royal family of Abu Dhabi.
After eight years of successful
operation, the Amiri Flight
Medevac service evolved into
Royal Med which was officially
launched in May 2003.
Royal Med has a fleet of four
different aircraft types for
maximum patient transfer flexibility.
Each is kitted out with
state-of-the-art equipment for
medical evacuations and all are
directly linked to medical
support on the ground in order
to provide in-flight treatment
and stabilising as deemed
necessary by the medical
teams. Aircraft types used by
Royal Med are the Learjet 35,
Gulfstream 300, Learjet 60 and
Boeing Business Jet (737-700).
■ MEH: Is Royal Med only a
medical transport service or
does it also provide medevac
and other services?
■ FP: Royal Med offers both
medical transport service as
well as medical services needed
by the patients while on board
the aircraft. Bed-to-bed
medical care comes with
complete in-flight monitoring
of the patients’ condition.
Royal Med performs all the
required co-ordination
between the healthcare
providers, hospitals and the
patients’ families. These are
competitively priced, roundthe-
clock personal care for
government authorities, hospitals,
embassies, individual
clients and insurance companies.
Once a request is
received, a Royal Med doctor
and his team assess the
patient’s condition in hospital
to evaluate transportability
and medical urgency. The
destination hospital is then
contacted and arrangements
made for direct admission.
■ MEH: Which hospitals is
it affiliated to?
■ FP: Royal Med isn’t affiliated
with any specific hospital,
though it does have excellent
working relationships with a
number of hospitals around the
world.
■ MEH: How extensive is
the region it serves?
■ FP: Royal Med flies patients
to several destinations
throughout Europe, the Far
East, the Middle East, the
Indian Sub-continent and the
USA.
We can fly patients to most
destinations worldwide and,
because we are based in the
Middle East, we offer a rapid
reaction time, creating a
strategic link between the Far
East and Europe. We guarantee
mission departure within 36
hours of mobilisation.
■ MEH: Who does it serve –
UAE nationals, medically
insured expats?
■ FP: Both UAE nationals
and medically insured expats
can avail themselves of Royal
Med’s round-the-clock personal
care. These could come from
government authorities, hospitals,
embassies, individual
clients and insurance companies.
Bed-to-bed medical care
comes with complete in-flight
monitoring of the patients’
condition. Royal Med performs all the required co-ordination
between the healthcare
providers, hospitals and the
patients’ families.
■ MEH: What is the demand
for this service from a business
point of view?
■ FP: Demand for Royal Med
is rising with greater awareness
of the unparalleled bed-to-bed
service this Royal Jet subsidiary
can deliver. Completed
missions during 2007 increased
by 35% on the previous year.
Year-on-year growth in both
the number of patients and
missions carried out continues
to rise by over 60%. Royal Med
has more than 500 successful
patient transfers to its credit
since it started operations.
Our pre-assessment checks
of all patients carried are one
of the unique services we offer,
ensuring transfers are made in
the safest and most appropriate
manner for their particular
conditions.
■ MEH: What medical
personnel are on board the
aircraft?
■ FP: Medical personnel on
board the aircraft are specialist
doctors and intensive care
nurses and paramedics who are
experts in their field and
highly experienced across
neonatal, paediatric and adult
clinical disciplines.
Royal Med’s offering is
unmatched in the entire region.
Our dedicated medical team,
which consists of more than 20
professionals, has specific
expertise in cardiology, paediatric,
neo-natal and intensive care.
■ MEH: What medical equipment
do the aircraft carry?
■ FP: We are equipped with
advanced technology,
including the latest neo-natal
ventilators and defibrillators
and have a large inventory of
modern critical care mobile
ICU equipment for all types of
mission. Royal Med aircraft are
capable of providing multiple
medical therapies that range
from continuous cardiac monitoring
(ECG rhythm strip &
12-lead ECG) to neonatal
transport incubators (Drager
5400, AirShields, Baby Pod
II). All Royal Med equipment
is subject to regular inspection
and biomedical testing.
| Dr Frank Porter Dr Frank Porter, an emergency medicine and critical care specialist, was recently appointed Medical Director of Royal Med. Dr Porter holds a medical degree from Munich’s Ludwig-Maximilian University. He completed his residency training at Yale University and is certified by the American Board of International Medicine. Dr Porter trained in aviation medicine with the Department of Aviation Medicine within the German air force. |
Date
of upload: 29th September 2008
