The Best Protection You Hope You'll Never Use
November 27, 2024
A father in Alaska thanks AirMed for providing his son EMS care during a trip to Vietnam
We’ve all heard the phrase, “You never know what you have until it’s gone.” But, for Ray Imel, that phrase could be modified to “You never know what you have until you need it.”
Imel, an Alaska resident, learned that important lesson in November 2023, when his son, Jack, while on a college trip to Vietnam, experienced an incident that affected his physical and emotional well-being. The health crisis was significant enough that Jack had to be taken to the Southeast Asian country’s ER.
“Vinmec Danang International Hospital, where Jack was initially admitted, has a fully modern ER,” recalled Imel. “My son was also treated there by a highly qualified physician, Dr. Nguyen Thai Tri, who went above and beyond to care for him, making himself available to help Jack even after his shift was over; he also agreed to accompany Jack on his return trip to the U.S.”
But in spite of the good care Jack was receiving, Imel says there were problems that needed to be worked through in order for him to get Jack back to the States, and back home.
“I arrived in Danang to see Jack at Vinmec. Then, per the hospital’s policies, Jack had to be moved out of the ER and admitted to another local hospital,” said Imel. “But that hospital, which was built in the 70s, lacked the amenities that were available at the previous hospital. Then, to add to that adjustment, there were shift changes, cultural differences and low internet accessibility at the second hospital that complicated matters even more.”
Imel says he stayed with Jack for five days at the second hospital until plans were confirmed for Jack and him to leave the country with the appropriate medical resources and support. Those plans included the intervention of a crew with AirMed International (AMI).
AirMed International offers a membership program that provides access to a fleet of medically equipped, private aircraft ready to transport patients across the globe to their local hospital of choice, should they become hospitalized more than 150 nautical miles from home.
Imel, who is an AirMed International member, says after receiving assistance from Dr Tri and AMI, along with the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam, Congressional Representatives and Jack’s mother, who also helped with coordinating his return to the States, and many others, a medical trip was arranged for Jack to be flown from Danang to Portland, Oregon. The medical flight included a stop in Taipei, Taiwan, where AMI took over the reins in bringing Jack home.
Imel says one AMI crewmate, in particular, contract representative Wanye Biegel, really stepped up to the plate, engaging Imel throughout the journey from Asia to the U.S.
“I appreciated Wayne’s support and counsel, which provided a lot of emotional comfort and peace during that challenging time,” said Imel, who added that the experience, at that moment, reminded him how thankful he was to have AMI by his side.
“AMI’s seamless support was evident from Taipei forward with expert navigation through airports, customs and immigration,” said Imel. “Never once did I feel like they didn’t know what they were doing. Wanye, especially, stood out as the ‘face of AMI,’ demonstrating excellent work in getting us home. He was compassionate, skillful and tenacious. Ours was not the typical mission; the entire team managed and improvised this trip at a high level.”
Today, on the one-year anniversary of that whirlwind trip, Jack is recovering well with his family. And as for Imel, he still remembers it as if it was just yesterday when it all happened. But when he talks about the events of that situation, rather than words that create an image of fear and trauma, there’s a hint of gratitude in his voice, a feeling he tries to share with his community about the advantages of being an AirMed International member.
“My family is grateful for the AirMed International coverage we have. Juneau, where we live, is landlocked. We have one hospital in the area, but it’s limited in its capabilities. If we didn’t have the membership, we would definitely face severe challenges in accessing vital health and medical services,” he said. “No one ever thinks they will face the kind of emergency that we encountered with our son overseas. It’s bad enough that someone you love is going through a medical crisis and then, on top of it, it’s happening in another country. You feel even more vulnerable. That’s why having this membership is so important. I tell everyone in my community it’s the best protection you hope you will never have to use, and if you do have to use it, like my family did— you are so appreciative it's there.”
*With an AirMed International membership, members have no out-of-pocket expenses in relation to their flight and AirMed staff oversee all necessary coordination of your medical, transport needs including: serving as a liaison between attending and receiving physicians, collecting medical data, drafting arrival and departure schedules and coordinating between the transferring and receiving facilities. All AMI members also may be transported from their admitting hospital to the hospital of their choice, with no out-of-pocket cost related to the flight.
Imel, an Alaska resident, learned that important lesson in November 2023, when his son, Jack, while on a college trip to Vietnam, experienced an incident that affected his physical and emotional well-being. The health crisis was significant enough that Jack had to be taken to the Southeast Asian country’s ER.
“Vinmec Danang International Hospital, where Jack was initially admitted, has a fully modern ER,” recalled Imel. “My son was also treated there by a highly qualified physician, Dr. Nguyen Thai Tri, who went above and beyond to care for him, making himself available to help Jack even after his shift was over; he also agreed to accompany Jack on his return trip to the U.S.”
But in spite of the good care Jack was receiving, Imel says there were problems that needed to be worked through in order for him to get Jack back to the States, and back home.
“I arrived in Danang to see Jack at Vinmec. Then, per the hospital’s policies, Jack had to be moved out of the ER and admitted to another local hospital,” said Imel. “But that hospital, which was built in the 70s, lacked the amenities that were available at the previous hospital. Then, to add to that adjustment, there were shift changes, cultural differences and low internet accessibility at the second hospital that complicated matters even more.”
Imel says he stayed with Jack for five days at the second hospital until plans were confirmed for Jack and him to leave the country with the appropriate medical resources and support. Those plans included the intervention of a crew with AirMed International (AMI).
AirMed International offers a membership program that provides access to a fleet of medically equipped, private aircraft ready to transport patients across the globe to their local hospital of choice, should they become hospitalized more than 150 nautical miles from home.
Imel, who is an AirMed International member, says after receiving assistance from Dr Tri and AMI, along with the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam, Congressional Representatives and Jack’s mother, who also helped with coordinating his return to the States, and many others, a medical trip was arranged for Jack to be flown from Danang to Portland, Oregon. The medical flight included a stop in Taipei, Taiwan, where AMI took over the reins in bringing Jack home.
Imel says one AMI crewmate, in particular, contract representative Wanye Biegel, really stepped up to the plate, engaging Imel throughout the journey from Asia to the U.S.
“I appreciated Wayne’s support and counsel, which provided a lot of emotional comfort and peace during that challenging time,” said Imel, who added that the experience, at that moment, reminded him how thankful he was to have AMI by his side.
“AMI’s seamless support was evident from Taipei forward with expert navigation through airports, customs and immigration,” said Imel. “Never once did I feel like they didn’t know what they were doing. Wanye, especially, stood out as the ‘face of AMI,’ demonstrating excellent work in getting us home. He was compassionate, skillful and tenacious. Ours was not the typical mission; the entire team managed and improvised this trip at a high level.”
Today, on the one-year anniversary of that whirlwind trip, Jack is recovering well with his family. And as for Imel, he still remembers it as if it was just yesterday when it all happened. But when he talks about the events of that situation, rather than words that create an image of fear and trauma, there’s a hint of gratitude in his voice, a feeling he tries to share with his community about the advantages of being an AirMed International member.
“My family is grateful for the AirMed International coverage we have. Juneau, where we live, is landlocked. We have one hospital in the area, but it’s limited in its capabilities. If we didn’t have the membership, we would definitely face severe challenges in accessing vital health and medical services,” he said. “No one ever thinks they will face the kind of emergency that we encountered with our son overseas. It’s bad enough that someone you love is going through a medical crisis and then, on top of it, it’s happening in another country. You feel even more vulnerable. That’s why having this membership is so important. I tell everyone in my community it’s the best protection you hope you will never have to use, and if you do have to use it, like my family did— you are so appreciative it's there.”
*With an AirMed International membership, members have no out-of-pocket expenses in relation to their flight and AirMed staff oversee all necessary coordination of your medical, transport needs including: serving as a liaison between attending and receiving physicians, collecting medical data, drafting arrival and departure schedules and coordinating between the transferring and receiving facilities. All AMI members also may be transported from their admitting hospital to the hospital of their choice, with no out-of-pocket cost related to the flight.
