Flying Angels has gained a well-earned reputation over the years for providing a much-needed service that helps those with mobility issues, including seniors and those recovering from injuries and illness, travel by air and ground. Simply put, Flying Angels services help people get safely from Point A to Point B.
But because the non-emergency medical transport services the company offers are still relatively new to many, Flying Angels Director Bob Bacheler frequently explains what the company does in appearances at conferences and in interviews. He recently made an appearance on KAKE TV, the ABC affiliate in Wichita, Kansas, to discuss how Flying Angels services benefit people.
“What we do at Flying Angels is we have nurses and doctors who accompany people who have medical or cognitive needs,” Bacheler said in the interview. “We’re flying people who need medical attention, need to get long distances, and we’re flying them with a critical care-trained registered flight nurse on a regularly scheduled commercial airline — Delta, American, United — and getting them where they need to go.”
Bacheler noted that Flying Angels provides care for patients from “bedside to bedside.”
“You tell us where the person is and where you want him/her to go, and we take care of everything in between. We’ll get them to the airport, we’ll fly them safely under the care of a nurse, then we’ll take them to their final destination,” Bacheler said.
Some of the Main Services Provided By Flying Angels
Flying Angels specializes in having trained flight nurses travel with patients on commercial flights. Flying Angels will book all the accommodations for the patient’s trip and work with the airport and airlines for any special services needed, such as early seating on the aircraft and getting medical equipment through security.
They also provide services for:
Senior relocations: Assisting seniors in relocating to new homes by managing all flight arrangements and providing in-flight medical care, thereby reducing the stress associated with major life changes.
Medical Flights: Coordinating domestic and international travel for patients who cannot fly alone due to a chronic condition or injury, with flight nurses ensuring continuous medical supervision throughout the journey.
Hospital Discharge Transportation: Providing medical assistance during transitions from hospital to home or another care facility, ensuring quality care during this critical period.
Bacheler appeared on the KAKE TV interview with Katherine Ambrose, president of America’s Senior Home Coach, a company that offers a wide range of senior care services. She said Flying Angels is often key to helping families move seniors.
She said about 89% of seniors “don’t want to move out of their home, and so they wait until there’s an urgent crisis. Then, the family is in turmoil, and they might want Grandpa to move to where they are.
“How are they going to get him there? They could have somebody fly with him, or maybe they can drive them across the country, but he’s not in a condition to do that. So, this [Flying Angels] is the way.”
Bacheler said that in those situations, some families may think about hiring a neighbor or a friend to transport the senior. “But by using us, you’re actually having somebody who is experienced in flying, experienced in patient care, knows airports, knows what medical situations are, and can fly with them to where they need to go,” he said,
A Cost-Effective Service With a Global Reach
Flying Angels provides a cost-effective alternative to air ambulance. In the interview, Bacheler said the cost of an air ambulance can run as high as $40,000 to $100,000 for a flight across the country. Flying Angels, on the other hand, can provide services for the same distance at $10,000 or less.
“That’s the flights, the nurse, the ground transportation, the whole nine yards,” Bacheler said. “And it really doesn’t matter where you are in the country. If you’re 200 miles from the nearest airport, we’ll make the ground transportation arrangements to get you there.”
Living in a rural area does not prevent people from using Flying Angels’ services. Bacheler noted that Flying Angels also flies internationally, including trips to Africa. “If we can get somebody into the heart of the Congo, we can get them into any city in the U.S.,” he said.
Bacheler said Flying Angels often flies with patients to the other side of the world. “I have a nurse who’s on her way to Shanghai with a patient right now, and we’re routinely back and forth to India,” he said. “So, we have a global reach, we’re transporting patients all over the world.”
Medical Professionals Who are There to Prevent Emergencies
Bacheler said that while trained flight nurses are key to what Flying Angels does, he likes to tell people, “Our nurses are not necessarily there to react to emergencies. Our nurses are there to prevent emergencies.”
To that end, Flying Angels nurses travel with specialized equipment to support care for those with mobility impairment. They range from those who have been impacted by traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries to those who have suffered from strokes.
Bacheler said one of the frequently used devices is a “comfort carrier,” which is a transfer sling used to move patients in and out of their seats. Using the sling, he said Flying Angels nurses can “take somebody who has absolutely zero mobility, get them into our wheelchair, get them into their airline seat, or whatever is needed.”
Flying Angels has a specially designed wheelchair that provides maximum comfort and safety, including a special neck rest, which allows patients to relax while being transported. He said Flying Angels nurses carry portable oxygen concentrators for patients with oxygen dependency. They consistently monitor vital signs throughout a flight, including blood pressure and glucose.
All of this has helped Flying Angels emerge as a leading NEMT company. “We are very proud of our Google reviews,” Bacheler said. “I often tell people to just Google ‘Flying Angels’ and they’ll find that we have over 300 Google and Facebook reviews. I can talk forever about what we do, but realistically, what I care about is what our clients have said about us in the past.”
Ambrose added that Flying Angels is held in “very high regard, very high esteem,” and that Bacheler is known for his appearances at healthcare and senior care conferences. She laughed and told the KAKE TV host, “He’s kind of famous.”
