Flight medicine expands services Published Dec. 15, 2010 By Maj. Paul Langevin 81st Aerospace Medicine Squadron KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Jan. 3, the 81st Aerospace Medicine Squadron flight medicine clinic expands its services with changes being made to sick call and normal duty hours. Sick call will be offered to all active-duty flying, special operational duty personnel and air traffic control students 7-8 a.m. Monday-Friday. The clinic is closed on nontraining Fridays. Personnel reporting to sick call and anyone requesting to return to flying status must check into the clinic at 7 a.m. to be seen. The clinic's normal duty hours will be 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and non-training Fridays and 8-11 a.m. Wednesday. To make an appointment for the flight medicine clinic, active-duty military eligible for flight medicine care call the hospital appointment line, 1-800-700-8603, 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday or 8 a.m. to noon Sunday. If appointments aren't available, call the clinic, 376-0444, in advance to see if they can be seen on a walk-in basis. Patients are reminded to call 911 if they have a medical or mental health emergency after duty hours on nights, weekends, federal holidays and non-training Fridays. For issues requiring a flight surgeon's input or decision that can't wait until the following duty day, call the Tricare appointment line, 1-877-794-4629. Those outside of the local area or who a non-life threatening emergency should call the regional Tricare number, 1-800-444-5445, where members can be directed to a nearby physician or emergency room. However, anyone seen in an emergency room must be seen in flight medicine the next duty day. All flying, special operational duty personnel and air traffic control students must report to flight medicine following a clinical visit anywhere other than flight medicine. Active aircrew, air traffic controllers and air traffic control instructors are responsible for scheduling an annual preventive health assessment to maintain medical qualification in their career field. The PHAmay be scheduled anytime within 90 days of the end of the birth month. To schedule a PHA, call flight medicine, 377-6668.