{"id":1101,"date":"2025-09-21T12:48:49","date_gmt":"2025-09-21T10:48:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thepatientiwillalwaysremember.wordpress.com\/?p=32"},"modified":"2025-09-21T12:48:49","modified_gmt":"2025-09-21T10:48:49","slug":"clinic-in-the-sky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/?p=1101","title":{"rendered":"Clinic in the SKY"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We were somewhere over the Atlantic, on the long haul back from Johannesburg after a field visit in Southern Africa. Next to me sat our nutritionist, a wonderfully spontaneous colleague whose energy had kept us alive through long, hot days in the field. I was hoping for a quiet flight \u2014 maybe even some sleep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then the inevitable announcement rang out:
\u201cIs there a doctor on board? Could he or she please make themselves known?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before I could react, my colleague shot her hand into the air with all her usual enthusiasm. My usual excuse \u2014 \u201cLet\u2019s wait, there are surely better doctors, you\u2019re only a pediatrician\u201d<\/em> \u2014 didn\u2019t fly anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A flustered flight attendant led us to the galley, where a man in a tracksuit was slumped against a cupboard, dripping with sweat. I recognized him instantly \u2014 he had been pacing nervously in Johannesburg airport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a quick check of my credentials, I got to work. Chest pain, he said. Not the first time, and \u2014 strangely enough \u2014 always on planes. His job? Selling heart catheters. His destination? Washington. His mood? Miserable \u2014 \u201clike my career,\u201d he muttered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There wasn\u2019t much I could do in the cramped galley, but luckily he had recently consulted a cardiologist. Through the cockpit we managed to get that very doctor on the phone, and we were invited forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cockpit looked like something from a film set: two young, impossibly handsome pilots, calm and professional, with just enough charm to make you suspicious. They listened closely as the cardiologist\u2019s advice came crackling over the line:
\u201cGive him a Valium. See what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the pilots turned to me, his face perfectly serious.
\u201cDoes it have a crack in it?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I blinked. \u201cUh\u2026 yes?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His face split into a grin.
\u201cPerfect. Then give the other half to our steward. Every time we fly with him, we end up with emergencies like this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The patient settled down, and the flight carried on without further drama. Back in my seat, the nutritionist shook her head in disbelief. \u201cOnly you,\u201d she said, \u201ccould end up running a clinic in the sky.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I laughed, but the truth is it spoiled the rest of my flight. I kept glancing back, checking if he was really quiet, if he was truly okay. The scene was absurdly funny, yes \u2014 but also unsettling. Days earlier, we had been treating children with almost nothing at hand. Here, above the Atlantic, a man had a doctor, a cardiologist on the line, and two charming pilots nearby. That contrast \u2014 and my restless watch over him \u2014 is what I\u2019ll always remember.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We were somewhere over the Atlantic, on the long haul back from Johannesburg after a field visit in Southern Africa. Next to me sat our nutritionist, a wonderfully spontaneous colleague whose energy had kept us alive through long, hot days in the field. I was hoping for a quiet flight \u2014 maybe even some sleep. Then the inevitable announcement rang out:\u201cIs there a doctor on board? Could he or she please make themselves known?\u201d Before I could react, my colleague shot her hand into the air with all her usual enthusiasm. My usual excuse \u2014 \u201cLet\u2019s wait, there are surely better doctors, you\u2019re only a pediatrician\u201d \u2014 didn\u2019t fly anymore. A flustered flight attendant led us to the galley, where a man in a tracksuit was slumped against a cupboard, dripping with sweat. I recognized him instantly \u2014 he had been pacing nervously in Johannesburg airport. After a quick check of my credentials, I got to work. Chest pain, he said. Not the first time, and \u2014 strangely enough \u2014 always on planes. His job? Selling heart catheters. His destination? Washington. His mood? Miserable \u2014 \u201clike my career,\u201d he muttered. There wasn\u2019t much I could do in the cramped galley, but luckily he had recently consulted a cardiologist. Through the cockpit we managed to get that very doctor on the phone, and we were invited forward. The cockpit looked like something from a film set: two young, impossibly handsome pilots, calm and professional, with just enough charm to make you suspicious. They listened closely as the cardiologist\u2019s advice came crackling over the line:\u201cGive him a Valium. See what happens.\u201d One of the pilots turned to me, his face perfectly serious.\u201cDoes it have a crack in it?\u201d he asked. I blinked. \u201cUh\u2026 yes?\u201d His face split into a grin.\u201cPerfect. Then give the other half to our steward. Every time we fly with him, we end up with emergencies like this.\u201d The patient settled down, and the flight carried on without further drama. Back in my seat, the nutritionist shook her head in disbelief. \u201cOnly you,\u201d she said, \u201ccould end up running a clinic in the sky.\u201d I laughed, but the truth is it spoiled the rest of my flight. I kept glancing back, checking if he was really quiet, if he was truly okay. The scene was absurdly funny, yes \u2014 but also unsettling. Days earlier, we had been treating children with almost nothing at hand. Here, above the Atlantic, a man had a doctor, a cardiologist on the line, and two charming pilots nearby. That contrast \u2014 and my restless watch over him \u2014 is what I\u2019ll always remember.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[5,9,17,24,25],"class_list":["post-1101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-aviation","tag-flying","tag-pilot","tag-travel","tag-writing"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1101"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1101\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bothsidesnow.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}