Mission impossible

I will never forget the day I learned that my best friend had been intubated because of complications from his Covid-19 infection. I had been following his situation with his wife for a couple of days. I knew his comorbidities including advanced muscular dystrophy would make him particularly susceptible to the virus and my hope is he could avoid the hospital. If not, perhaps a brief hospital stay with limited respiratory support. Less than 24 hours after he was admitted my worst fears came true when his wife informed me of his intubation.

Critically ill one thousand miles away from home, family, schools, and friends, he and his family were indefinitely stuck in Miami. Home in Ohio seemed impossibly far away as he clung to life, lungs barely functioning, fighting for every new sunrise with an unrelenting spirit of survival. Much the same as he had lived his life, his wife and I committed to approaching his healthcare decisions with equal conviction. We would plan for success and pursue it with unwavering perseverance.

A fighting spirit

After a month on the ventilator he had survived hospital acquired pneumonia, sepsis, hyperkalemia, DKA, ARDS, MI and CHF but his options in that facility had reached their limit. Still intubated and hemodynamically fragile but holding on, the family decided his best option was to return to a hospital in Ohio. Working hand-in-hand with an extraordinary intensivist in Miami, his 1,000 mile road to home became the most complex and challenging in company history.

Turning an airplane into a mobile ICU is one thing – transporting a patient already at the maximum capacity of world class ground based ICU is a decidedly different animal. On 100% oxygen and Nitrous his oxygen requirement exceeded one O2 bottle just to get from the ICU to the Ambulance. Worse still, he had a history of desaturating to the 50% range (normal is above 90%) with any movement whatsoever. Moving him from a hospital bed to a moving pressurised metal tube and back to a hospital bed when he had never been able to get to a CT scan was going to be an incredible challenge.

The mission

As the target date of transport got closer, our largest aircraft, a Citation Sovereign, was configured for his trip. I assembled an exceptional team of air medical professionals: myself, another doctor I had trained in residency, a nurse, and a respiratory therapist. The night before I had an extensive meeting with my colleague and every aspect of the trip was scrutinised. Responsibilities of each team member were defined, and plans for effectively communicating these goals were formulated.

All the preparation paid off. The team performed flawlessly, and the mission was a resounding success. The impossible mission was completed without a single desaturation. The miracles continued because two weeks later he was weened off the ventilator. To this day he still enjoys each and every new sunrise.

The team performed flawlessly, and the mission was a resounding success

Working with a team of dedicated and passionate professionals is truly the greatest honor of my career. Everyone within the company is passionate about helping others in need. Missions may seem impossible, but we embrace the challenges because oftentimes we are the last hope for a patient and their family. The trust placed in our hands and hearts is truly humbling. At Aitheras Aviation group and Acute Air Ambulance, medical transportation is not simply what we do, it’s who we are! We are fortunate to bring our life’s purpose to every corner of the world.