Rescue at 30,000 Feet

Dr. Jihad Bishara

Is there a doctor in the house, or in this case, on the airplane? Those words were heard by Dr. Jihad Bishara, Head of the Infectious Diseases Unit at Rabin Medical Center, while on a flight home to Israel after attending a medical conference in the USA. Heeding the call for assistance, he found a group of very anxious American tourists huddled around one of their friends, a woman lying unconscious on the floor. Quickly checking her vital signs, Dr. Bishara found a weak pulse and low blood pressure. He hooked her up to an IV (which the airplane luckily had on board) and began an infusion of liquids. The woman slowly began to recover, but continued to feel faint throughout the flight, apparently as a result of a new beta blocker pill she had begun taking several days earlier. Dr. Bishara stayed by her side throughout, giving her liquid nourishment including coffee and brandy (he needed a glass as well). The woman got off the plane feeling a little stronger, and was very lucky that Dr. Bishara had been on her flight.

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