A Qualitative Study of Pilots’ Educational Needs and Program Development in Aerospace Healthcare

Increasing complexity of aerospace operations have created an urgent need for specialized healthcare training tailored to extreme environments. This study aimed to explore educational requirements for aerospace healthcare. Using a qualitative exploratory design, two focus group interviews were conducted with six veteran pilots, each with more than 20 years of professional flight experience. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and thematically analyzed. The analysis identified three key themes: perceptions of unique medical risks, specific educational needs, and training method preferences. Participants emphasized challenges such as providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation in microgravity, responding to hypoxia and cabin pressure loss, and delivering emergency care in confined spaces. They also highlighted the importance of equipping nonmedical crews with basic emergency skills, incorporating scenario-based modules, and adopting simulation-based, team-oriented approaches similar to Crew Resource Management. These findings the need to establish structured and evidence-informed aerospace healthcare training programs that are operationally relevant and pedagogically sound. This study contributes to the foundation for developing simulation-driven curricula and provides insights to guide future program designs for supporting both astronaut safety and the emerging era of commercial spaceflights.