Patients who have been admitted to the hospital for an acute coronary syndrome or those who have undergone a recent revascularization by PCI or coronary bypass surgery are at an enhanced risk of developing a coronary event during the first year of follow-up.

The travel industry has witnessed an exponential growth over the last decade, and unfortunately, patients at risk travel to countries with limited facilities in case of a recurrent cardiac event. It would be a major step forward if patients are informed about local facilities prior to their departure. These observations led to the initiative to develop a Medtravel App to accommodate this lack of information as has been presented a few years ago during a Stent for Life meeting in Prague.

This Medtravel App should provide information on the 24/7 centers in the country of destination. This proposal from Prof. Dr. Jan J. Piek from the University of Amsterdam has led to discussions with the current Stent – Save A Life! Global Initiative to start collaboration on this topic of interest in order to facilitate cardiac patients during their stay abroad. The intention is that the website of Stent – Save A Life! will provide information on the number of primary PCI/million inhabitants in a similar fashion as has been published by Kristensen, et al., on behalf of Stent for Life (Eur Heart J 2014:35;1957-70).

The website of Stent – Save A Life! will refer to the Medtravel App to provide patients with more detailed information on the distribution and exact location of 24/7 centers in Europe. This allows cardiac patients to plan their trip abroad by using this information prior to their departure. Moreover, the Medtravel App facilitates the storage of relevant medical information, of every individual patient, that is urgently needed in case of an emergency event.

Finally, the Medtravel App permits the patient to contact a call centre, covered by medical specialists, that is currently installed in collaboration with Cardiology Centres, the largest outpatient organization in the Netherlands. The Medtravel App is currently under development and expected to be launched in spring 2018. It is hoped that this Medtravel App will assist cardiac patients during their stay abroad, facilitating optimal medical care in case of an acute coronary event;  one of the main objectives of the Stent – Save A Life! Global Initiative.