How to Prepare Your Family Member for an Air Ambulance Transfer from Dhaka

When the decision has been made to arrange an air ambulance from Dhaka to Bangkok, a new kind of pressure settles in. The call has been made. The process is running. Now you’re standing in a hospital room in Dhaka and you need to know: what do I actually do to get this person ready? This guide answers that question practically and specifically. It covers preparation for the patient, preparation for the accompanying family member, what happens at each point in the journey, and the things families consistently forget until it’s too late.

The Direct Answer

To prepare a family member for an air ambulance transfer from Dhaka to Bangkok, you need to complete six tasks: collect and photograph all medical documents, locate and check both passports, prepare the patient’s medications in a clearly labeled bag, inform the hospital they are preparing for international transfer, brief the patient if they are conscious, and pack a bag for the accompanying family member that covers at least two weeks in Bangkok. These tasks can be completed in parallel while the air ambulance coordination is running. You do not need to finish them before the coordination starts.

Task 1: Collect All Medical Documents and Send Them Now

This is the first task and the most time-sensitive. Do it while other family members handle everything else. Photograph every medical document in the patient’s hospital room and send them to Thai Medi Xpress via WhatsApp at 01844047060. Don’t organize them first. Don’t wait until you have everything. Send each photograph as you take it.

What to photograph:

• The most recent blood test printout (full blood count, metabolic panel, cardiac enzymes if cardiac case, HbA1c if diabetic)
• Any imaging reports visible in the room: CT scan, MRI, echocardiogram printout, chest X-ray
• The doctor’s prescription or medication chart on the bedside table or wall
• Any discharge summary or case summary letter if already prepared
• The hospital admission letter showing the admitted date and diagnosis
• The nursing observation chart if you can read the current vitals from it

You are not sending these for administrative purposes. Thai Medi Xpress submits these to Bumrungrad Bangkok’s international patient office so the receiving specialist can review the case before the aircraft departs Dhaka. The more complete your submission, the better the receiving team is prepared when your patient arrives.

If imaging CDs (CT or MRI) exist, request them from the hospital’s radiology department immediately. Ask the ward nurse who to contact. This request often takes 1 to 2 hours to process and needs to start early. The CDs travel with the patient in the accompanying family member’s hand luggage. Our guide on how to send medical reports to Bumrungrad from Bangladesh covers this in full detail.

Task 2: Locate Both Passports and Check the Expiry Dates Immediately

Go to this task the moment Task 1 is assigned to another family member.

The patient’s passport must be located, checked, and photographed. The expiry date must be at least 6 months from today for a standard visa application. If it is less than 6 months from today, contact Thai Medi Xpress immediately. This is a critical issue that affects the entire timeline and has no quick fix other than emergency passport renewal, which takes 24 to 48 hours minimum.

The accompanying family member’s passport must be checked with the same urgency. Many families remember to check the patient’s passport and forget to check their own. An accompanying family member with an expired passport cannot board the aircraft.

Photograph both passport information pages and send them to our WhatsApp immediately. Do not wait to send the physical passports. Digital photographs are sufficient to start the visa application process. The physical passports are needed only at Hazrat Shahjalal Airport before boarding. The Thailand visa requirement and emergency processing is covered in Our Emergency Thailand visa for Air Ambulance patients guide and Our Documents Required for Thailand Medical Visa Guide.

Task 3: Inform the Hospital They Are Preparing for International Transfer

This task is done by speaking directly to the ward nurse or the duty doctor, not through a written request. Walk to the nursing station and say clearly: “We are arranging an international air ambulance transfer to Thailand for this patient. We need the patient to be prepared for discharge and we need a formal case summary letter from the treating doctor.” This single conversation starts two important hospital processes.

The formal case summary letter is a document the treating doctor must prepare. It covers the diagnosis, treatment given, current clinical status, medications, and the reason international transfer is being sought. This letter is needed for the Bumrungrad pre-admission briefing, the Thailand visa application, and the in-flight medical team’s briefing. At major Dhaka private hospitals like Square Hospital, United Hospital, Evercare Dhaka, and Apollo Dhaka, this letter can typically be prepared within 1 to 3 hours when urgency is clearly communicated. At government hospitals including BSMMU and DMCH, the process takes longer. Start this request as early as possible.

The hospital discharge preparation involves the nursing team beginning the process of preparing the patient for transfer: completing the intravenous access assessment, ensuring the patient is on the minimum monitoring leads that can be transferred to the ground ambulance, and preparing a final medication administration record. If you have trouble communicating the urgency, ask our coordinator to call the ward sister or duty doctor directly. This is a service we provide routinely and it typically accelerates hospital response significantly.

Task 4: Prepare the Patient’s Medications

This task is critical and consistently mishandled. Do not leave it to the hospital to pack medications automatically.

Go to the nurse and ask explicitly:

“Can you prepare all of this patient’s current medications for the transfer? We need all active medications, the doses, the timing, and enough supply for at least five days.”

Request the following:

• All current oral medications with exact doses and frequency
• All intravenous medications currently running (the flight team will take over these but needs the names, concentrations, and current infusion rates)
• All PRN (as-needed) medications the patient has been receiving
• The patient’s allergy list written on paper with the specific allergens named

Write your own medication list regardless of what the hospital provides. Write every medication by its generic name (not just brand name), the dose in milligrams, and how many times per day. Bumrungrad’s receiving pharmacist uses generic names. A list showing only “Losar” or “Trika” without the generic name and dose creates confusion at the receiving end. Families can help by ensuring all prescribed drugs and emergency medication are identified, especially rare or expensive ones. If any of the patient’s current medications are unusual, imported, or not commonly available in Thailand, flag this specifically to our coordinator. The Bumrungrad pharmacy needs to confirm availability before the patient arrives. Keep the physical medication packet in your possession, not in luggage that goes into a cargo hold. All medications travel in the accompanying family member’s hand luggage.

Task 5: Prepare the Patient Themselves

This task depends entirely on whether the patient is conscious and alert.

If the Patient Is Conscious and Alert

A conscious patient who understands what is happening needs specific information, not reassurance without facts. Most conscious patients feel less anxious when they know what is coming than when they are kept vague.

Tell them:

• “We are moving you to Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. It is one of the best hospitals in Asia and a team there is already being briefed about your case.”
• “A doctor or nurse will be with you throughout the journey. You will not be alone at any point.”
• “The journey involves a ground ambulance to the airport, a flight of about three and a half hours, and then another short drive to the hospital in Bangkok.”
• “You don’t need to do anything. The medical team will handle everything.”

Do not use false cheerfulness or vague reassurance like “everything will be fine.” A conscious patient who is seriously ill knows their situation. They respond better to honest, calm, specific information than to reassurances that don’t match how they feel. If the patient is anxious and asking questions you can’t answer, tell them honestly: “I don’t know the answer to that yet. Our coordinator can tell us. Let me find out.” Then call us and ask.

Physical preparation for a conscious patient:

• If the patient can tolerate it and it’s clinically safe, help them change into a comfortable loose garment. Hospital gowns are appropriate and often easier given IV lines and monitoring leads.
• Remove any jewellery or personal items and place them in the family member’s hand luggage. Do not put jewellery in the patient’s bag. It may be separated from them during transfers.
• If the patient wears glasses and can still use them, ensure glasses are accessible and protected. Pack the case.
• If the patient has dentures, they need to be secured before sedation or during transfer. Inform the flight nurse about this specifically.
• If the patient uses a hearing aid, ensure it is functional and the battery is charged.

If the Patient Is Unconscious or Sedated

For a patient who is sedated, intubated or unconscious, physical preparation is managed entirely by the hospital nursing team and the ground ambulance medical professional. Your role is different.

Your job is to:

• Ensure all documentation is complete and travels with the patient
• Stay out of the clinical team’s way during the transfer preparation
• Be available to answer questions the medical team has about the patient’s history that aren’t in the written records
• Be present at the hospital when the ground ambulance arrives so you can confirm the patient’s identity to the transport team

The flight nurse will receive a clinical handover from the Dhaka hospital nursing team at the moment of transfer. This handover is formal: vital signs, current infusion rates, ventilator settings, medication times, and any recent clinical changes. You don’t need to participate in this handover. You need to be present so you can provide personal identification and confirmation if asked.

Task 6: Pack for the Accompanying Family Member

This task is almost always done last and almost always done inadequately. The accompanying family member who boards the air ambulance with the patient may be in Bangkok for days, weeks, or longer depending on the patient’s treatment.

Prepare a bag with essential items including identification, insurance documents, a change of clothes, personal hygiene items, and any necessary medical devices or prescriptions. But for a Bangladeshi family member traveling to Bangkok on an air ambulance, the requirements go beyond this standard checklist.

Documents (in hand luggage, never checked):

• Your own passport (already checked and photographed)
• Your Thailand visa confirmation (Thai Medi Xpress coordinates this)
• Photocopies of both you and the patient’s passport information pages (carry two copies in separate places)
• The Bumrungrad appointment confirmation letter or acceptance letter (Thai Medi Xpress provides this)
• The patient’s complete medication list with generic names and doses
• All medical imaging CDs from the Dhaka hospital
• Any written instructions from the treating Dhaka doctor for the Bumrungrad receiving team
• Your Thai Medi Xpress coordinator’s WhatsApp number saved and tested

Money:

Bumrungrad charges in Thai Baht. US dollars are accepted at the hospital’s exchange counter at competitive rates. Bring USD cash if you can. USD 2,000 to USD 3,000 in cash gives you enough for the initial admission deposit, accommodation for the first few days, and daily expenses while you sort out any bank transfer for larger amounts. International debit cards work at Bangkok ATMs but carry foreign transaction fees of 2% to 4%. Notify your bank before travel that you’ll be using your card in Thailand to prevent a fraud block. If arranging USD at short notice in Dhaka is difficult, prioritize getting whatever foreign currency is accessible. The Bumrungrad international patient team can advise on payment arrangements for the admission deposit once you arrive.

Clothing and personal items:

Pack for a minimum of two weeks, not three days. The most common mistake families make is packing light, expecting to be home quickly, then finding themselves extending Bangkok accommodation repeatedly because treatment takes longer than the initial estimate.

• 4 to 5 changes of clothing suitable for Bangkok’s heat and humidity
• Comfortable walking shoes (you’ll cover significant distance in the hospital)
• Personal hygiene essentials for at least two weeks
• Any prescription medications you personally take, with enough supply for two weeks
• Phone charger and a travel adapter (Thailand uses Type A, B, and C sockets, compatible with most Bangladeshi chargers without an adapter, but confirm yours)
• A lightweight jacket for the hospital’s air conditioning, which runs cold in all Thai hospitals

Communication:

Buy a Thai SIM card at Suvarnabhumi Airport when you land. A prepaid data SIM costs approximately THB 300 to THB 500 and gives you local calling and data for the duration of your stay. This is cheaper and more reliable than international roaming and allows you to call local Bangkok numbers, including the Bumrungrad patient coordination desk, at local rates.

Save the Bumrungrad International Patient Center number before you leave Dhaka. The IPC is on the Ground Floor of Building B. When you arrive, this is your first stop after the patient is admitted to the clinical area.

What Happens at Each Transfer Point: What the Family Does

Understanding each handover point removes uncertainty from a process that can feel chaotic from the outside.

Handover Point 1: Hospital Room to Ground Ambulance

The ground ICU ambulance arrives at the Dhaka hospital. The ambulance medical professional and the hospital nursing team manage the patient transfer from the hospital bed to the ambulance stretcher. Monitoring equipment transitions from the hospital system to the ambulance system.

Your role: Stand to one side and stay out of the clinical team’s way. Be available to answer questions. Once the patient is settled in the ambulance, you board the front passenger seat or the designated family position. Do not ask to ride in the clinical compartment with the patient during the ground transfer. The medical professional needs unobstructed space to monitor and care for the patient.

Bring all hand luggage into the ambulance with you. Nothing goes separately.

Handover Point 2: Ground Ambulance to Aircraft at Hazrat Shahjalal Airport

The ground ambulance drives to the Hazrat Shahjalal Airport tarmac directly. Thai Medi Xpress has managed the tarmac access clearance in advance. The ambulance reaches the aircraft without going through the passenger terminal.

The patient is transferred from the ambulance stretcher to the aircraft stretcher system. This transition is managed by the flight medical team and the ground ambulance professional together. Monitoring continues without interruption.

Your role: You board the aircraft through the standard passenger entry point, not with the patient through the stretcher loading system. A ground handler will direct you. Show your passport when asked. Stow your hand luggage in the space the flight team designates. Sit in the seat you’re assigned. Do not attempt to assist with the patient transfer at the aircraft door unless the flight nurse specifically asks for your help with a specific task. The handover is a clinical process.

The Flight Itself: 3.5 Hours from Dhaka to Bangkok

The flight from Hazrat Shahjalal Airport (DAC) to Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) takes approximately 3.5 hours. During the flight, the patient is in the clinical area and the flight medical team is monitoring continuously.

Your role during the flight:

• Stay in your seat unless the flight nurse tells you the patient is asking for you or you’re needed
• Do not interrupt the flight medical team with questions during active clinical monitoring
• If you have a question about the patient’s condition, wait for a moment when the flight nurse isn’t actively performing a procedure and ask quietly
• Use the flight time to prepare mentally for Bangkok. Review the Bumrungrad IPC address. Check you have the Thai Medi Xpress coordinator’s number saved. Confirm the accommodation plan if it hasn’t been arranged yet

The flight is not empty time. It’s 3.5 hours of uninterrupted ICU care for your family member, and the best thing you can do is let the medical team work without distraction.

Handover Point 3: Bangkok Airport to Bumrungrad Hospital

When the aircraft lands at Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bumrungrad’s airport representative team is already there. You and the patient take different routes at this point.

The patient is transferred from the aircraft via the medical route with the flight team accompanying them in the Bumrungrad hospital vehicle.

You clear passport control and customs through the standard international arrivals hall. The Bumrungrad airport representative will guide you through this process and meet you on the arrivals side. You then travel to Bumrungrad in the same hospital vehicle or a separate arranged transport.

Do not try to stay with the patient through the medical arrival channel. Immigration law requires you to clear passport control in person through the standard arrivals process. The flight team stays with the patient until hospital handover. The full arrival process at Bumrungrad is described in detail in Our Air Ambulance Dhaka to Bumrungrad guide covering what happens when your patient lands in Bangkok.

Handover Point 4: Bangkok Airport to Bumrungrad Admission

At Bumrungrad, the clinical handover from the flight team to the receiving Bumrungrad specialist happens at the bedside in the receiving department. This is a formal handover covering all clinical information from the Dhaka hospital and the in-flight observation.

Your role: Go to the International Patient Center (IPC) on the Ground Floor of Building B. Thai Medi Xpress’s coordination means the IPC team is expecting you. Give them your name and the patient’s name. They will:

• Complete the administrative registration
• Assign a patient coordinator, who will be Bengali-speaking for Bangladeshi patients
• Direct you to the relevant department or waiting area
• Advise on the admission deposit and payment process

You don’t need to explain the patient’s case from scratch. Bumrungrad already knows it.

The Things Families Forget Most Often

Based on coordination experience, these are the items most frequently left behind or overlooked.

Imaging CDs from the Dhaka hospital. Families photograph the printed reports but forget to request the actual imaging files on CD from the radiology department. The Bumrungrad radiologist needs the imaging files, not the printed report, to conduct their own assessment. Request these specifically.

The patient’s personal identifying items. National ID card (NID), glasses, hearing aids, and any personal religious items the patient keeps with them. These matter clinically (hearing aids affect communication with the Bumrungrad team) and personally (a patient in an ICU in a foreign country finds comfort in familiar items).

Enough cash for the first 48 hours. Bumrungrad requires an admission deposit before clinical procedures begin. Having USD 2,000 to USD 3,000 in cash or on an accessible international card means the deposit is handled immediately without delay.

The accompanying family member’s own medications. Families so focused on the patient’s medications forget their own. A family member who runs out of antihypertensive medication or insulin in Bangkok faces a fixable but avoidable problem.

A note with all key contact numbers written on paper. If your phone is lost, stolen, or runs out of battery, you need these numbers on paper in your wallet:

• Thai Medi Xpress Dhaka: 01844047060
• Thai Medi Xpress Chittagong: 01844 047063
• Bumrungrad International Patient Center: +66 2 011 3000
• Bumrungrad Bangkok Coordination (our team): +66 972 701282

A Final Note on Staying Calm

This guide covers preparation tasks, not emotional guidance. But one practical point is worth making. A panicking family member at a hospital in Dhaka makes the process slower, not faster. Hospital staff respond more efficiently to calm, clear requests than to distressed demands. Our coordinators communicate more effectively with a family member who can relay information accurately than with one who is too overwhelmed to listen.

Being calm in this situation is not about not caring. It’s a deliberate choice that directly helps the patient. Assign tasks to different family members. Give each person one job. Let our coordinator manage the overall timeline. Your job is to execute the specific tasks in this guide and stay in contact with our team. The coordination is running. The process is moving. Your job is to support it, not to manage it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What documents should I prepare for An Air Ambulance Transfer from Dhaka?

Collect and photograph: all blood test results, imaging reports and CDs, the treating doctor’s case summary letter, both the patient’s and accompanying family member’s passports (valid for at least 6 months), the current medication list with generic names and doses, the hospital admission letter, and the patient’s allergy list. Send photographs immediately to Thai Medi Xpress via WhatsApp at 01844047060. Physical documents travel in the accompanying family member’s hand luggage.

Should I tell the patient they are being transferred by Air Ambulance?

If the patient is conscious and alert, yes. Give them specific, honest information: where they’re going, what the journey involves, and who will be with them throughout. Most conscious patients feel less anxious with accurate information than with vague reassurance. If the patient is sedated or unconscious, physical and clinical preparation is managed by the hospital and ground ambulance team.

What should the accompanying family member pack for Bangkok?

Pack for a minimum of two weeks, not three days. Essential items: two weeks of clothing suitable for Bangkok heat, your own prescription medications, all patient medical documents and imaging CDs, both passports, phone charger and adapter, USD 2,000 to USD 3,000 cash or equivalent on an accessible international card, and the Bumrungrad IPC address and contact number.

What do I do at Hazrat Shahjalal Airport during the transfer?

You board the aircraft through the standard passenger entry point while the patient is loaded through the medical stretcher system. Show your passport when asked. Sit in your assigned seat. Do not attempt to assist with patient loading unless specifically asked by the flight nurse.

Can I be with the patient throughout the journey?

You travel on the aircraft with the patient but in a separate seat, not in the clinical area. At Suvarnabhumi Airport Bangkok, you clear passport control through the standard arrivals hall while the patient is transferred via the medical route. The Bumrungrad airport representative guides you through Bangkok arrivals and takes you to the hospital. You are reunited with the patient at Bumrungrad.

What if I arrive in Bangkok and don’t know where to go?

Go directly to the Bumrungrad International Patient Center (IPC) on the Ground Floor of Building B. Thai Medi Xpress’s pre-admission coordination means the IPC team is expecting you. Tell them your name and the patient’s name. They assign your Bengali-speaking coordinator, handle registration, and direct you from there. You can also call our Bangkok coordination team at +66 972 701282 if you need guidance at any point.

Is there anything I should not do during the transfer?

Do not interrupt the medical team during active clinical procedures. Do not place medications or patient documents in checked luggage. Do not put jewellery or valuables in the patient’s personal bag. Do not contact multiple air ambulance providers simultaneously. Do not delay telling Thai Medi Xpress about an expired passport.