Medical care at Schiphol – "We’re proud to still be meaningful in these trying times”
Medical care is available to our travellers, visitors and employees 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – despite how quiet the airport is right now. First aid, G.P.’s and the Airport Medical Services’ Ambulance Service are available to everyone who needs help. Senior nurse Jop Welling and ambulance first aid nurse René Hoogenbosch talk about their jobs.
Drop-ins at Airport Medical Services
You cannot just drop in at Airport Medical Services as a traveller or employee because of the corona crisis. Jop said: "When someone with physical symptoms rings the bell at our door, we talk to them through the intercom and give advice. Of course, we will still treat the traveller if it is really necessary, but sometimes advice or a referral to their own doctor is sufficient. We work with gloves, surgical face masks and sometimes even face shields in order to protect ourselves and the patient against the coronavirus”.
Our ambulance in the area
We are now deploying the ambulance elsewhere since it’s relatively quiet at Schiphol. "We are now also driving out to Hoofddorp and Badhoevedorp for call-outs. The ‘Medic’ as it’s called – an ambulance that can provide medical care but cannot transport people – remains available at Schiphol at all times. We can still provide excellent medical assistance if something happens”.
New chances
The current situation also offers new possibilities. René said: "We receive a weekly update on the protocols for dealing with corona-related situations. In addition, we spend even more time on internal education and training. That way, we remain optimally trained for non-corona-related matters as well”. It also gives credence to human factors. "There is a great deal of collaboration between colleagues," said Jop. "You need to ensure that you don't lose sight of each other because we employ fewer staff at the moment. We sent all our colleagues a card to let them know we are thinking of them. That was well appreciated”.
More meaning than ever
René said: "The coronavirus inspires fear in people. We find ourselves in situations where people are terrified that they have contracted the coronavirus. We try to take away this fear from our patients by examining them as closely as possible on the spot. Therefore, our services may mean more today than they once did. I am proud of the fact that we can still mean so much to people at Schiphol”.
