A medical emergency or accident that occurs while a person is traveling, whether for business or vacation, can be a frightening and disorienting experience. In these situations and others, a hospital case manager is typically assigned to a patient to ensure that he or she is transitioned to the appropriate level or care, has a plan for care, and is receiving treatment as prescribed. Hospital case managers also serve as an advocate for the patient while in the hospital and after discharge, and communicate closely with his or her family members.
As the patient is preparing for discharge, the focus of care typically shifts to the challenge of making arrangements for the patient to travel home, to a selected care facility, or to the home of a loved one.
A key part of any discharge plan is ensuring safe transportation for the patient. If long-distance or overseas travel is required, a hospital case manager will work with the patient and his or her family to suggest several options that address the patient’s medical needs. In many cases, one of those options will likely include bed-to-bed medical transfers using commercial airlines and medical escorts. These services are typically much more cost-effective than air ambulance services.
Once the mode of transportation has been selected, a hospital case manager will coordinate the patient’s care during transport with the service provider. This includes detailing any medical support the patient may need while traveling, such as supplemental oxygen and even mechanical ventilation.
SentinelMED is Skilled in Assisting Hospital Case Managers
Since its founding, SentinelMED has worked closely with hospital case managers to offer affordable, timely and highly professional long-distance medical transport and repatriation services to patients in need. Hospitals rely on SentinelMED to assist and transport patients who are recovering from emergency care, as well as medical tourism patients who are traveling to and from their facilities for scheduled procedures. This service is typically provided through the use of commercial airlines and qualified medical escorts. In the rare case that a patient is not able to fly on a commercial airline, SentinelMED partners with trusted vendors to provide air ambulance travel at a discounted price.
In coordinating patient care, a member of the SentinelMED team asks hospital case managers about any language or cultural needs a patient may have, and the patient’s escort is chosen based on those needs. SentinelMED also can arrange for a translator to travel with the medical escort and assist the patient during preparation and departure, on the flight itself, and on arrival at the receiving facility or family home. In some cases, a doctor of physician assistant may escort the patient to deliver needed care and to make the experience as comfortable as possible.
As experienced air medical transport providers, members of the SentinelMED leadership team are regularly invited to speak as guest lecturers at hospitals that serve a significant number of foreign and visiting patients. These lectures typically cover topics such as aerospace physiology; travel insurance and the challenge of discharging various categories of non-local patients; and how to arrange medical transportation for non-local patients to their homes or long-term care facilities.
The SentinelMED team understands the complexity of delivering exceptional care to the sick, elderly or injured patient who is away from home and in an unfamiliar environment. Please contact us if you’d like to learn more about the services that SentinelMED offers or its staff.
