Question from the RegaCLUB team to Nadine, flight doctor

I learnt it as an emergency doctor in the rescue service. But I never have to radio when I’m in the ambulance aircraft, only the pilot does that.

Raphael (3) Maienfeld (GR)

Yes, whenever a child flies in the Rega jet, they’re given a Rega jet soft toy. It’s very cute and even has a face, and the children are very happy when I give them one.

Dorian (9) und Milo (6) Luzern (LU)

No, so far no babies have been born in a Rega jet. But every year we transport around five children who are born prematurely abroad. For the flight, we place them in our mobile incubator, where it’s nice and warm. A children’s doctor and an intensive care nurse from a children’s hospital make sure the baby is comfortable during the flight. 

Léa (9) Chessel (VD)

Yes, around half of the flight doctor team are women. We also have some women in our team of nurses and in the cockpit. At the moment, Rega employs four female jet pilots. So, as you can see, you would be in good company with us.

Darian (9) Stans (NW)

Once we flew to southern Italy to bring two patients back home to Switzerland from two different places. The first patient was already on board the ambulance jet when we brought the second one into the cabin. Suddenly we heard a loud “Hello!” – it turned out that the two ladies were neighbours. Despite their health problems, they enjoyed the return flight together and laughed so much that we had to laugh, too.

Luca (8) Penthalaz (VD)

In our jet, there’s room for up to four patients lying down. To make sure they always receive top medical care, they’re looked after by our medical crew throughout the flight. There are always at least two crew members – a flight doctor and an intensive care nurse.

Margaux (7) Gampelen (BE)

Yes, we have the same medication available in the jet as in a hospital. Most often we need different painkillers. This enables us to make sure that the patients are as pain-free as possible during the flight.

Alek (8) Lamboing (BE)

That varies depending on the mission. But there are always at least four of us. Two pilots are needed for the jet to be able to fly at all. Then there is also a flight doctor and an intensive care nurse. For very long distances, we need a larger crew – sometimes four pilots take turns in flying the plane.

Jean Luc, Zürich (ZH)

It depends not only on how serious the patient’s injury or illness is, but also on the circumstances in which they find themselves. How good is the medical care on location? Are friends or relatives also there with them? In order to find the answers to such questions, and also because each case is different, a Rega medical consultant always speaks with the patient, any friends or relatives, and the local doctors on the phone. The Rega medical consultant then decides, in consultation with the Operations Center, the best way to help the patient. Besides transport by Rega jet, it’s also possible to bring a patient back home on a normal flight, accompanied by a Rega flight doctor or intensive care nurse.

Noé (6) Pringy (FR)

The Rega ambulance jet is really fast: it can fly at a speed of up to 850 kilometres per hour. The peregrine falcon, the fastest bird in the world, can reach speeds of up to 300 kilometres per hour in a dive. So we’re travelling pretty fast.

Paul (7) Vaduz (FL)

No, that would be too dangerous. Sometimes it shakes quite a bit in the aircraft, so you wouldn’t be able to operate safely. However, we can make sure that the patients are comfortable throughout the flight. If necessary, we can inject them with painkilling medication, for example. We also check whether their pulse and blood pressure are OK and whether there is enough oxygen in their blood. 

Leonie (12) Wilderswil (BE)

Yes, as long as it’s safe for the crew and we can land there. The Rega flight coordinators check this before we take off on a mission. If it’s not possible to fly to a particular country, we still try to help the patient. For example, by organising transport by ambulance to a neighbouring country, where we’re able to land with the Rega jet.

Paul (7) Vaduz (FL)

First of all, you have to study medicine for around 6 years. After that, you either become a specialist in anaesthesia (anaesthetist) or intensive care medicine. You’ll then have gained enough experience in hospitals to be able to apply to work at Rega.

Albert (5) Haslen

The basic equipment is always on board the jet, such as various medications, ventilators and monitors. Depending on the mission, we also take additional equipment with us. Then we need enough food and drink for the patients and the whole crew. When we fetch a child, we always take a cuddly toy jet with us as a present. 

Chiara (8) Kairo Ägypten

That depends on how big your family is. If we’ve enough space, we’ll take your parents and any brothers and sisters with us. But sometimes we don’t have enough room – for example, because another patient is travelling with us, too. But even then we take at least your father or mother along. So you never have to fly completely alone.

Fabio (8), Sandro (6) und Larina (3) Rorschacherberg (SG)

Together with the intensive care nurse, I’m in charge of taking care of the patient. For example, we make sure that they’re comfortable and as pain-free as possible. We look after them during the flight and regularly check their pulse. If their condition suddenly gets worse, we can react immediately

Raphael (3) Maienfeld (GR)

Unfortunately, we don’t have enough space in the jet to hang up drawings. However, we’ve hung up lots of drawings that children have sent us in our offices. They’re very beautiful and we’re always very happy to receive them.