MedAire, Inc. announced that it is expanding its level of inflight medical assistance services that it provides to one of the world’s leading airlines—Emirates. Emirates’ cabin crew can now obtain clinically-accurate vital signs data from a passenger who has taken ill in flight, with the introduction of a new passenger health monitoring system, Tempus, from UK-based Remote Diagnostic Technologies Ltd (RDT).

Tempus records a passenger’s blood pressure, pulse rate, temperature, electrocardiogram (ECG), blood oxygen and carbon dioxide levels.

The data is then sent via the inflight communications system to MedAire’s Phoenix, Arizona-based 24/7 MedLink Global Response Center where board certified emergency physicians review the data, assess the situation and advise the crew and/or medically-qualified onboard volunteer on the best course of action.

Dr. Cliff Webster, Emirates’ Senior Vice President Medical Services said, “Emirates takes the health and safety of its passengers very seriously. We are confident that with Tempus our customers will receive the best medical care available on board aircraft today.”

MedAire Founder and Chairman Joan Sullivan Garrett said, “With the Tempus on board, it will better enable our physicians to differentiate between serious and minor medical conditions and help support the decision making that must take place in these situations.”

The Tempus is now installed in all Emirates’ Airbus A340-500 aircraft which are currently operating services between Dubai and New York, Osaka, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland and Christchurch. The unit will be fitted into the Airbus A380-800 aircraft and the long-range Boeing 777s currently on order.

Emirates’ pursers and senior flight stewards are fully trained in the use of the Tempus monitoring system, which also sends high-resolution pictures from the aircraft to the MedLink Global Response Center to help physicians with further assessment and treatment.

Emirates’ crew contacts MedLink by satellite telephone from either the flight deck or a seat phone and is able to make contact from anywhere around the globe.

In addition to helping with the immediate situation, MedLink will continue to monitor an onboard situation until the aircraft reaches its destination.
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