Stroke Abroad: Air Ambulance and Medical Repatriation
A stroke during a trip or a stay abroad is a medical emergency managed first by the local team. Once the patient is stable, we organize the transfer to a facility closer to home.
The first hours after a stroke are handled by the local emergency and neurology team. Our role starts when the family, the hospital or the insurer asks about a transfer: we gather the medical file, assess with our coordinating physician whether the patient can travel, and organize a medically escorted flight to a hospital with the required specialty, or closer to the family.
Our coordinating physician assesses each case together with the on-site medical team to determine the equipment required and the transport mode best suited to the patient's condition.
When we are called in
- Stroke during a holiday or a business trip, once the local team considers the patient stable enough to travel
- Transfer to a stroke or neurology unit in the home country
- Rehabilitation unit closer to family after the acute phase
- Return home of a patient who needs continuous medical monitoring
How the transport is organized
Before the flight
- Collection of the medical file, imaging and reports from the local hospital
- Assessment of fitness to fly by our coordinating physician with the treating team
- Coordination with the receiving hospital and its neurology unit
- Ground transfer from the hospital to the aircraft, on a stretcher
On board
- Medical crew with intensive-care or neurology experience, depending on the case
- Continuous monitoring of vital signs and neurological status
- Oxygen, suction and, if needed, ventilation equipment
- Cabin comfort and pressure managed according to the patient's condition
Fitness to fly and timing
There is no standard timeline: the right moment to fly after a stroke depends on the type of stroke, the patient's stability and the treating team's opinion. Our coordinating physician discusses it directly with the local doctors and the receiving hospital before any flight is confirmed.
Our team can work directly with the patient's insurer or assistance company to arrange fast coverage — see our dedicated page for insurers and assistance companies.
This page gives general information about how a medical transport is organized and is not medical advice. Every decision is taken by the treating physicians together with our coordinating physician, case by case.
Related services
Common questions
Often yes, once the treating team considers the patient stable enough to travel. Our coordinating physician reviews the medical file and discusses the timing with the local and the receiving doctors before confirming the flight.
In most cases, yes. A patient recovering from a stroke generally travels with a medical crew able to monitor vital signs and neurological status, and to act if the condition changes in flight.
The decision is shared between the treating physicians and our coordinating physician, case by case. We never organize a flight that the medical teams consider unsafe.
A medical situation abroad can't wait.
Our coordinators are available right now — every day, at any hour.