OMAR stands for Consultative Body for Medical Advisors in Repatriation Organizations. The initiative for OMAR was taken at the end of the 1980s by the Health Care Inspectorate and representatives of assistance companies and repatriation organizations in the Netherlands . Over the years, the increasing need to create coherence and alignment in the complex field of international medical transport of patients became apparent, in which OMAR took its role.
Who are we?
Improvement of quality of medical repatriation
By standardizing guidelines and protocols for the organizations affiliated with OMAR, the quality of international medical transport has much improved.
The need for cooperation was further reinforced by the rapid increase in the number of travelers, and with it a growth in the number of patients to be repatriated. The ongoing considerations about the quality of medical services and increasing patient assertiveness have undeniably also contributed to this development.
Guide lines
OMAR holds the position that its members should be aimed at the patient to be repatriated, with the medical and nursing needs as its central focus. For that reason, guidelines were made, years ago, for doctors who work at assistance companies and repatriation organizations in which the minimal requirements per disease during medical transport by air, are stated. These guidelines are evaluated periodically within OMAR and adjusted if necessary. The latest version is from 2019.
In addition to these guidelines, a set of implementation protocols has been defined for international patient transport by road.
In this way, OMAR is constantly working to improve the quality of medical repatriation.
