FEATURE


Getting essential medical supplies to remote locations and at the right time involves a complex supply chain.


Chain reaction W


hen a patient requires immediate medical treatment – say at 30,000 feet – access to right medical supplies is crucial. For airlines


and companies with remote sites, the question remains: which supplies should be on hand beyond the basic or regulatory requirements?


Global standardization In 2005 as part of its strategy for growth, America West merged with US Airways and immediately formed a standardization team to streamline its operations and onboard equipment. Tricia Schmidt is US Airways’ Manager of Cabin


Safety. “Part of the standardization process was to review our safety equipment across the fleet,” she says. Because America West had a basic medical kit for its predominately domestic flights, and US Airways had an enhanced kit for both its domestic and international flights, the joint airline needed a standard solution. As the ground-based medical advisor for both airlines,


MedAire, an International SOS company, helped the newly formed airline select the best medical kit. “We


14 Hotline Issue 1, 2011


analyzed years of in-flight medical data from both companies to find the optimum solution,” explains Dr Paulo Alves, MedAire’s Vice President of Aviation Health. “Using that data gave us peace of mind that we were making the right decision”, adds Tricia. “In the end, we upgraded to the enhanced kit. And we added a new recommended component which, based on report data, has been used many times since.”


Major challenges Alan Zeller is Chief Operating Officer of International SOS’ new Medical Supply Chain division. “Companies need specialist medical supplies in remote locations all over the world – on land, in the air and at sea”, he explains. When a mining company establishes a new project in Indonesia, for example, its onsite clinic needs access to pharmaceuticals, malaria kits and so on. Most airlines and commercial ships carry regulated medical kits in case of an onboard emergency. Obtaining supplies that are high-quality and cost- effective requires a specialist sourcing and distribution


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