International SOS Conducts First Air Medical Evacuation across the Taiwan Straits

Attention Business Editors

PHILADELPHIA, September 14 /CNW/ - International SOS has carried out the first direct cross-Straits medical evacuation since the signing of an agreement between China and Taiwan earlier this year, allowing direct air access by chartered flights across the Taiwan Straits for emergency medical rescue. This is the first time since 1949 that any flight of this nature has been possible.

China's Cross-Straits Aviation Transport Exchange Council and the Taipei Airlines Association signed the agreement on June 14. Said John Williams, Managing Director of International SOS in China, who was heavily involved in the discussions that led to the agreement, "We have been lobbying both authorities for 18 months to be allowed to set up this facility and our Cross-Straits Emergency Medical Rescue Service came into being on June 28. This operates direct flights by chartered passenger aircraft across the Taiwan Straits for emergency medical cases. Today saw the first operational flight and we are immensely proud to have been selected to operate the service."

A 71-year-old Taiwanese man suffered a stroke while visiting relatives in Dongguan, Guangdong Province and his family contacted International SOS. After reviewing his medical reports and consulting the local treating doctor in Dongguan, International SOS doctors recommended that the patient be evacuated home on an air ambulance, escorted by medical specialists to ensure that the patient's medical condition remain stable throughout the flight.

A medical specialist team from the Beijing Alarm Center, comprising an Intensive-Care-Unit trained doctor and flight nurse, arrived in Guangzhou on September 14 in a dedicated air ambulance, a Hawker 800XP, to escort the patient home to Taiwan. The patient arrived in Taipei later the same day and was met by a doctor and nurse from International SOS Taiwan who escorted him to the local hospital.

International SOS alarm centers in Beijing and Taipei worked closely with the patient's families in Dongguan and Taipei, the local treating doctor in Dongguan and the receiving hospital in Taipei to ensure that the patient arrived home safely.

Dr. Charles Van Reenen, Medical Director, North Asia Region, International SOS said, "Prior to the availability of a direct service across the Taiwan Straits, patients who were required to be evacuated or repatriated to Taiwan from Southern China had to travel by road ambulance to Shenzhen or Macau before they could be transported by commercial or charter flight to Taiwan. In this particular case, the travel time is reduced by three to four hours because we no longer have to do a stopover, go through customs clearance and transfer the patient from the road ambulance to the air ambulance."

About International SOS

International SOS has global operations in over 65 countries, spanning five continents. The company provides clients with a comprehensive portfolio of medical and security services to ensure that people traveling and working internationally have access to immediate help. International SOS services range from 24-hour medical advice, referrals to qualified doctors and hospitals as well as provision of emergency medical and security evacuations when there is a critical illness, accident or civil unrest.

Last year, the company handled over 780,000 assistance cases, including more than 14,000 medical evacuations. From July 2005 to June 2006, International SOS evacuated 638 patients from China to Taiwan via Shenzhen, Macau and Hong Kong.

International SOS Philadelphia Andrea Bestul, 215-942-8050 or Fleishman-Hillard Terry Banks, 202-828-9710

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