Stretcher transport
In a stretcher transport, the patient is carried on a patient stretcher in a vehicle specially equipped for the purpose.
Learn more: Stretcher transportIVR recognition
Glossary · Quality and staff · also: IVR, IAS, IVR-IAS
In brief
The key points at a glance
The Swiss Interassociation for Rescue Services (IVR, in French IAS) is the umbrella organisation of the Swiss rescue services. It sets quality guidelines and recognises emergency medical services and transport companies that meet these requirements in an external audit — IVR recognition is therefore the most important independent quality mark in patient transport.
Also called: IVR · IAS · IVR-IAS · Swiss Interassociation for Rescue Services · IVR certification · Interassociation de sauvetage
What the IVR checks
For recognition, the IVR examines not only the vehicles but the entire organisation: training and continuing education of staff, equipment and vehicle maintenance, hygiene, dispatch procedures, documentation of journeys and quality management. Recognition is granted for a limited period and is reviewed periodically — so an organisation must meet the standards on an ongoing basis.
For patients, relatives and institutions this means: IVR recognition is not a self-declaration on a website, but the result of an external audit.
The requirements are graded according to the type of organisation: an emergency medical service that treats emergencies has to meet different conditions from a patient transport service that carries out planned journeys with stable patients. Both, however, are audited according to the same principles — with an on-site inspection, a review of documents and interviews with staff.
Training levels in patient transport
The IVR also describes what training staff need for which tasks. Patient transport is about caring for medically stable patients: transferring them safely, positioning them on the stretcher, securing them in the wheelchair, monitoring them during the journey and responding correctly if their condition changes.
At Mobimed, staff are trained to IVR level 3. This training includes first aid, the use of oxygen and a defibrillator, and professional assistance during stretcher and wheelchair transport.
Why IVR recognition matters to hospitals
Hospitals, clinics and care homes increasingly award transport contracts only to recognised providers. For them, IVR recognition is simple, reliable proof that staff, equipment and procedures are in order. It is also a good guide for private individuals choosing between different providers.
Mobimed is the first IVR-recognised patient transport provider in north-western Switzerland. The certificate can be checked at any time in the public IVR register.
Reputable providers link their certificate to the IVR register. If in doubt, ask for the certificate number and check the entry yourself. Terms such as “certified staff” or “inspected vehicles” without proof are no substitute for recognition of the organisation as a whole.
What recognition means in everyday practice
For patients, recognition shows in the details: staff know the right techniques for transferring, the stretcher is strapped down, the wheelchair is secured with an approved system, and oxygen and the defibrillator are checked and ready for use. After every journey the vehicle is cleaned according to set hygiene rules, and every journey is documented.
For institutions, it means predictability. Anyone who entrusts transport to a recognised organisation does not have to check training and equipment themselves — the IVR does this in its regular audits. This builds trust with care homes, Spitex (home care) organisations and hospitals, who place patients in the hands of others every day.
In practice
A care home chooses its transport partner
The management of a care home in the Leimental is looking for a new partner for its residents’ journeys to the doctor and to hospital. Instead of just comparing prices, it checks the IVR register to see which providers are recognised. That way it makes sure that the staff are trained and the vehicles are inspected regularly.
Related services
All services What we can drive for you
Hospital transfers
On a hospital transfer, we take patients from one institution to the next: from a hospital to another clinic, from an acute hospital to a care home or from a clinic back to hospital.
Learn more: Hospital transfers
Wheelchair transport
With wheelchair transport, the patient stays seated in their own wheelchair.
Learn more: Wheelchair transportAnswers
Frequently asked questions: IVR recognition
What does “IVR-recognised” mean?
That an emergency medical service or transport company has met the quality guidelines of the Swiss Interassociation for Rescue Services in an external audit. Recognition is reviewed periodically.
Is Mobimed IVR-recognised?
Yes. Mobimed is the first IVR-recognised patient transport provider in north-western Switzerland. The certificate can be viewed publicly in the IVR register.
Is an IVR-recognised patient transport an emergency medical service?
No. The IVR recognises both emergency medical services and patient transport services; the requirements differ. In an emergency, always call 144.
Glossary
All terms Related terms
Quality and staffPatient transport paramedicPatient transport paramedics (Transportsanitäter/innen) are rescue service professionals with a Swiss federal diploma.Quality and staffTransport assistantTransport assistants accompany medically stable patients during transport: they help them get in and out, secure the wheelchair and patient in the vehicle, drive and look after them on the way.Types of transportEmergency medical serviceThe emergency medical service cares for people in medical emergencies and takes them to hospital under medical supervision.EquipmentDefibrillator (AED)A defibrillator is a device that delivers a targeted electric shock in certain life-threatening heart rhythm disorders, above all ventricular fibrillation, so that the heart can return to an orderly rhythm.Types of transportPatient transportPatient transport is the accompanied transport of a person who is ill, injured or has limited mobility but is medically stable — to the doctor, to hospital, to rehabilitation or home.
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The first IVR-recognised patient transport service in north-western Switzerland
Recognition by the Swiss Interassociation for Rescue Services (IVR/IAS) is not a self-assessment but the result of an external audit of vehicles, equipment, training and procedures. Mobimed was the first patient transport provider in north-western Switzerland to receive it — and still holds it today.
Check the certificate in the IVR registerRecognised by health insurersOur journeys are recognised by Swiss health insurers as medical transport.
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