“I think we all imagine it won’t happen to us,” says Steve L.
When Steve and his wife sent their 15-year-old son to study abroad in the south of France, they received the kind of news that is a parent’s worst nightmare — their son was severely ill with bacterial pneumonia.
The two immediately flew to France.
Most people who catch bacterial pneumonia recover relatively quickly once they receive care. Our teen traveler, however, didn’t receive appropriate treatment until his parents arrived in Europe. By that time, he was already extremely sick.
Steve took his son to the hospital where he was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit. He stayed there for 12 very long days, terrified he was going to die.
That’s where Seven Corners came in.
Travel Insurance for Study Abroad in France
Luckily, Steve had purchased travel insurance before his son studied abroad. This decision paid off.
Feeling frantic, Steve and his wife called Seven Corners Assist to figure out how to get their son back to the U.S.
“When I called, even though it was very late in the U.S., I got a human being on the phone,” he said. “I was taken care of immediately. After this, I didn’t have to be the one asking questions and figuring things out.”
Road to Recovery with Travel Assistance Services
The Seven Corners Assist team immediately got to work coordinating the son’s journey home.
The first step was locating a hospital in the United States that could provide appropriate care. After some research, they discovered the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio would be a good fit. The team arranged a phone call between the American and French doctors (with the help of a translator) to determine the son’s needs during a transport.
Next, Seven Corners arranged for a nurse to travel at the son’s bedside and monitor his vitals during the transatlantic flight all the way until he was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic.
Without travel insurance, the family would have been liable for an enormous hospital bill, along with $16,000 in transportation costs. On top of this, they would also have been responsible for coordinating their son’s transport to an American hospital, finding a nurse to accompany him, and arranging the flight home. All on their own.
With Seven Corners travel insurance, however, they were protected financially and the anxiety of coordinating lifesaving care — in a foreign language — was lifted from their shoulders.
The son didn’t remain at the Cleveland Clinic for long. After only a day, doctors confirmed he was medically stable and able to make the rest of the journey to his home in New Mexico. He arrived safely in Santa Fe, on the road to a long but full recovery and eager to put the entire event behind him.
Sense of Security with Travel Insurance
The situation left a mark on Steve. Before long, he was planning another international trip. One mistake he wouldn’t make: going without travel insurance.
“I’ve already purchased Seven Corners insurance for my next trip,” he said. “I can’t imagine being on another international trip without that protection.”
Whether studying abroad or going overseas for vacation, be sure to protect your health and your trip with travel insurance. The family in this story knew that their son’s domestic health insurance wouldn’t cover him in France, making the travel medical insurance plan they purchased invaluable.
Find the right coverage for you — or your family — at SevenCorners.com. Contact our licensed team with questions or for help making this valuable pre-trip purchase.
