Lufthansa plans to have its flying intensive care unit (ICU) certificated for use on the Airbus A340 by the end of the year.
It is currently used on the German airline's fleet of Boeing 747-400 aircraft. Last year more than 40 scheduled flights were operated with the ICU installed on the aircraft.
Doris Ehring, Lufthansa manager, patient transport compartment, says demand is growing, particularly in the Arab world. "Lufthansa, as a network carrier, has become an appreciated alternative to special ambulance charter aircraft that are usually more expensive," she says.
The unit can be installed in an aircraft in 1h, and takes up the equivalent space of 15 seats. It is self-contained and separate from passengers and has room for a patient and an accompanying medical team.
Ehring says that benefits of using the flying ICU include reduced travel time because unlike air ambulances on long-haul flights, no refuelling stops are needed.
The ICU is equipped with an intensive care station, ventilator, EKG monitor, blood gas analyser, defibrillator, perfusors and infusors together with necessary drugs. The airline arranges medical escorts at each end of the flight.
Ehring says the ICU will probably be available for installation on the Airbus A380 in future.
Speaking in Dubai, she says there is considerable demand in the Arab world where patients are flown either for treatment in Europe or onward to the United States. However, she adds patients needing specialist treatment in future are just as likely to be flown into the Middle East as out of the region.
The growing quality of health care in the Gulf particularly, coupled with changing patterns of health care provision in areas such as Europe, could see the flow of patients reversed.
"Traditionally, products such as the Lufthansa Patient Transport Compartment would be used to fly patients from the Middle East to Europe or the United States.
"But now we see this region starting to build very sophisticated clinics so we may start to see the patterns change."
Source: Flight Daily News
