Medical transport, including ambulances, privately operated vehicles, and emergency air travel, is used to transport patients to medical treatment facilities. Local ambulance services are the most common form of medical transport, while air medical transport is reserved for urgent situations. Most medical transport is covered by health insurance, but private services may not be covered.
Also known as medical transport, medical transport is any form of transportation used to transport a patient to or between medical treatment facilities. The most common example of medical transport is the ambulance, a land vehicle that is often used in emergency situations to take an injured or sick person to a hospital or other care facility. Transportation options may also include privately operated vehicles from nursing homes and assisted living facilities to transport residents to and from medical appointments, as well as emergency air travel which can be used to transport patients to remote medical facilities.
Among the various medical transport services, the local ambulance service is the most widespread. Often privately operated, these local services are used for emergency medical transport to the local hospital or other appropriate medical facility when the patient is not in a position to be transported by other means. An ambulance service is often employed for non-emergency medical transport, such as moving an incapacitated patient from one medical facility to another. More rarely, the ambulance service may be used to transport patients from a medical facility to a private home or private clinic upon discharge from hospital.
Air medical transport has become more popular in recent decades. Often this type of medical transport is reserved for situations where there is a high degree of urgency. Sometimes referred to as an ambulance air, airplanes or helicopters are equipped with all the necessary life support equipment to keep the patient stable during the journey. It is not uncommon for this type of medical transport to be used to move patients requiring specialized care from one hospital to another care facility with expertise in surgical or treatment options relevant to the patient.
Emergency medical airlift is also often employed as a means of moving military personnel from a war zone to a medical facility equipped to treat the type of injuries sustained by the individual. Similarly, air medical transport is often used by private citizens who fall ill during a visit to another country and wish to return to their home country for treatment. There are air medical transport services licensed to operate in almost every country in the world.
In terms of costs, most forms of medical transport are covered in full or in part by health insurance. In situations involving medical emergencies or transportation deemed necessary by a doctor, expenses are more likely to be fully covered. However, people who choose to use private medical transport services when another means of transport would work just as well may find that their health insurance provider will deny the request, leaving the individual to pay the cost of medical transport out of pocket. .
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