By Yoel Bueta, EMT, United Hatzalah of Israel
My name is Yoel Bueta, and I just had an incredible experience: I saved a man’s life in mid-flight.
I was traveling from Israel to London last week for a short vacation. As we were nearing the end of the flight, with only 40 minutes left, I heard a commotion in the rear of the plane. People were yelling for help.
I got out of my seat and rushed over to a man in his 50s who had just fainted. He was pale and his skin was sweaty and cold to the touch. He wasn’t experiencing any shortness of breath, but his heart rate was very low. A passenger handed me an electric blood pressure cuff and when I took the man’s blood pressure it registered as lower than 90 systolic. He was suffering from hypotension, but I could tell there was more to this story.
I asked the flight crew if they had any medical equipment they could bring to me, they went to check and found none. I took an oral history and asked the man’s wife whether he was suffering from any pre-existing medical conditions. She said he was not. Just then, the man fainted again. It seemed very likely that the man was suffering from a severe case of hypoglycemia, and that this was the first time he was showing symptoms.
I asked the flight crew and passengers for sweets, and everyone was eager to help. I fed the man chocolate and asked for sugary drinks as well. I asked the crew to inform the pilot that we would need an ambulance to wait on the tarmac when we touched down, to take the man to the hospital as quickly as possible.
When we touched down, an ambulance was waiting for us, and I briefed the medical crew on what had happened and the steps I took. They were grateful for the thorough information and I was happy to transfer my patient, who was stable for the moment, into their care.
Thanks to the chocolates and sweet drinks, the man regained full consciousness and his symptoms dissipated. I shudder to think of what would have happened had I not been there to help. None of the other responders or the crew had the training to assess the source of the man’s ailment. With 40 minutes left until the touchdown, and without my intervention, this story could have a tragic ending.
Yoel Bueta is a volunteer EMT with United Hatzalah in the Beit Shemesh area and works with his dad in their family business. When he isn’t busy at work, or traveling, he spends his time responding to medical emergencies.
