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AmyWilder

Global medical and safety services provider MedAire is building a peer-to-peer support network for flight crews with OdiliaClark. MedAire announced the partnership in May on the heels of the FAA's announcement of new mental health guidelines that the agency published this spring.
The peer-to-peer support option is available to flight crew members whose employers contract with the company. Volunteers provide real-time support globally for needs ranging from someone who doesn’t have anyone to vent to and simply needs a sympathetic ear, to someone who may have dealt with an onboard medical emergency and needs emotional and mental support in the aftermath, or someone who may have landed far from home and received bad news on arrival.
Peer support volunteers, or PSVs, are particularly well-suited to help crew members navigate these concerns because they are also members of the aviation community and understand the particular pressures that come with the job, MedAire said.
This is in line with the FAA’s Mental Health and Aviation Medical Clearances Rulemaking Committee recommendations published this spring, which encourage pilots to seek support and include talk therapy—without immediately having to declare this to an aviation medical examiner—as a potential avenue of relief for concerns that could be nipped in the bud if addressed early.&nbsp;
“Healthcare avoidance and reticence to come forward are issues that we have faced globally. And these are issues we have to address,” said Peter Whitten, sales director at OdiliaClark,&nbsp;pointing to research by William Hoffman about the impact of healthcare avoidance among pilots, often reluctant to risk their livelihoods by seeking timely care.
Talking about issues is among the first steps since it helps reduce stigma. “I came into peer support as a user,” said Whitten, who is also an airline pilot. “It ended up with me getting psychological support and flying throughout. Standing up and telling that story as a man, and encouraging others to tell their stories” is vital because “it’s rare that someone hits middle age without going through something in their life. Encouraging leaders of organizations to speak about their experiences can be really powerful.”
And while MedAire’s peer support services are there to help someone in crisis get help, “ideally, we want to catch you as early as possible,” Whitten added. He drew an analogy to physical injuries, relating the story of a pilot who didn’t seek care for a damaged Achilles tendon. Several months later, when the pilot put some tension on it, the tendon burst, and he was then out of work for six months rather than the couple of weeks that might have been required earlier. For emotional or mental concerns, it’s much the same, Whitten said.
Richard Gomez, vice president of products at MedAire, pointed out that it’s typical for people to pay attention to their physical health each day and dedicate activities to maintaining it, like brushing their teeth, eating healthy foods, or working out at the gym. But it doesn’t often occur to people to dedicate time in their schedule to take care of their mental well-being.
“The word ‘health’ is the key piece here,” Gomez said. “I think it’s really important to bridge the gap between physical and mental health and realize mental health has a stigma issue. And a person is a person. The pilot sits in the front of the plane, the flight attendant's in the back of the plane, and the maintenance is on the ground, but you're a person, and how you respond to things and are treated for things is as a person.&nbsp;What's different in the aviation environment is the unique situation that you're in. You don't have a lot of support as crew members away from home, if you think about it. And so I think you've got to go back to the basics. A person's a person.”
Gomez said while a peer support network is different from an employee assistance program, “what I do think is important for everyone to realize with peer support is there is a methodology—it's not just sitting down and chit-chatting. It could be, but there is still a methodology to it.”
PSVs must undergo a rigorous application and training process before helping crewmembers navigate their concerns, including training about when to escalate a situation to other professional services for more serious issues. PSVs also receive support to help prevent secondary trauma or burnout.
Crew members can access services through a phone app after their employer signs up for them. MedAire also offers materials like refrigerator magnets and wallet cards for aviation professionals to have quick access to contact information.
MedAire is exhibiting at the 2024 edition of NBAA-BACE and had originally planned to offer a training session for peer support volunteers (PSV) but has since rescheduled that training. It schedules periodic training for volunteers.
On Wednesday, MedAire is presenting its inaugural Golden Lifesaver Award, created to honor the “exemplary medical response actions” of an individual who received MedAire training. The first recipient is Silvina “Linda” Cecil of MGM Resorts Aviation, who is being recognized for rescuing a child who was choking during a layover in Tokyo.
Also at this year’s NBAA-BACE, MedAire is being honored with the 2024 Henderson Trophy in recognition of its contributions to medical and security assistance in aviation. The award recognizes the company's pioneering MedLink system, which connects aircraft directly to medical experts. CEO Bill Dolny will accept the award on Tuesday alongside founder Joan Sullivan Garrett.

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