Emergency on the plane

Last week, when I wasile on a flight to Okinawa Prefecture to provide surgical guidance of a minimally invasive aortic valve replacement procedure, there was a very sick personone of the passengers became very ill on board. 

There was an announcement asking if anyone there was a doctor on board. I immediately raised my hand, and the a cabin attendant led me to the back of the plane, where I found a man lying unconscious. It He was having an epileptic seizure, and fortunately his breathing and circulation were intactstable, so I was able to simply observed him while giving him oxygen until the emergency medical team arrived.

The aircraft companyline was extremely grateful to me for this my response, and they later gave sent me a letter of appreciation and a gift certificate worth 10,000 yen.

However, at the time, I ha’d been exchanged for an upgraded my seat by with a man who was accompanying me to coordinate the trip, so the seat I was occupying did no’t match my name, and the crew found out that I ha’d exchanged seats during the identification process.

I’ve often experienced these such emergencies on trains and on the street, but this was the first time I ha’d dealt with a sick person on a plane.

Advise for a friend

Yesterday, a friend gave me a call to have my opinion about quitting his present job and getting a new position. I have already introduced new jobs for him twice. He is always searching new jobs in other hospitals if he gets better position and money, but I think his way of thinking is wrong.

We are certified cardiovascular surgeons who usually works in teams. The team consists of not only surgeons but anaesthesiologists, cardiologists, medical engineers, nurses and any other stuffs in the hospital. We can’t work in good performance without these skillful stuffs, that he doesn’t realize. Surgeons are supposed to be a leader of the team like a captain of the ship, who makes decisions of the direction, speed, and styles of surgery. Crews of the ship need to follow the captain’s decision and his style of work for the best result of the patients’ treatment.

I have never thought about quitting jobs for the reason of that I am not satisfied with the position or stuffs to cope with. I will try to change the circumstances, not escaping from dissatisfaction. To negotiate and compromise among team is more important for a surgeon than complaining about his dissatisfaction.