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Royal Med, the international aeromedical evacuation and repatriation service of the Abu Dhabi government owned Royal Jet, which is chaired by His Excellency Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, last year flew patients on a record number of missions to several destinations throughout Europe, the Far East, Middle East, the Indian Sub-continent and the USA.

In total, it completed over 150 missions during 2007 - an increase of 35% on the previous year.

Royal Med offers competitively priced, round-the-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.

‘Demand for Royal Med is rising with greater awareness of the unparalleled bed-to-bed service this Royal Jet subsidiary can deliver,’ said Shane O’Hare, President & CEO, Royal Jet.

‘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.’

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 range in size from the Learjet 35 right up to the Boeing Business Jet - an adapted Boeing 737 - for multiple patient transfers. Also used are a Learjet 55 and a Gulfstream 300.

The record performance comes as Royal Jet plans to further enhance its Royal Med offering to cope with forecast increased demand and maintain its standing as the Middle East’s leading medevac operator.

Royal Med recently appointed emergency medicine and critical care specialist Dr Frank Porter from Germany as its Medical Director.

Dr Porter, who holds a medical degree from Munich’s Ludwig-Maximilian University, completed residency training at Yale University and is certified by the American Board of International Medicine, is responsible for ensuring Royal Med’s service integrity.

He joins an already highly respected team led by Dr Nart, who is in charge of pre-flight patient assessment.

‘The appointment of Dr. Porter, who trained in flight and aviation medicine with the Department of Aviation Medicine within the German air force, is in line with our strategy of recruiting best-of-breed expertise across all disciplines required for excellence of operations,’ said O’Hare.

‘Royal Med’s offering is unmatched in the entire region,’ said Dr Porter. ‘Our dedicated medical team, which consists of more than 20 professionals, has specific expertise in cardiology, paediatric, neo-natal and intensive care. 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 has more than 500 successful patient transfers to its credit and employs a dedicated, highly-qualified aero-medical team to deliver a discreet and professional onboard service.

‘We are highly attuned to the sensitivities of the medevac operation in both patient care and that of accompanying passengers,’ said Dr Porter.

‘Our task is to provide not only high quality medical care but also peace-of-mind for all involved.’

‘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,’ added Dr. Porter. ‘We guarantee mission departure within 36 hours of mobilisation.’