doctor, doctor, give me the news …

Dean did come back to the bar for a chat, and I must say it was delightful.

He is now having a snooze. The crew having the first break are in the crew-rest bunks, leaving Ryan and I to manage the front. I am keeping an eye on Mr. Weiss in Seat 5J. He has barely eaten anything and has been asleep for most of the flight. Even in deep sleep, he looks unwell.

I realise that the call-light hasn’t gone off in some time. Could it be?

I sneak out into the cabin and flash my recently whitened teeth when I see that His and Her Majesty are sound asleep. He is snoring, and her false teeth have slipped a fraction.

She doesn’t look so regal now, I chuckle to myself.

I grab a magazine and sit down on my crew jump-seat for a well-earned reading session. I never read gossip magazines at home, but relish the opportunity to do so on aircrafts. At 35,000 feet, for some reason, I’m really interested in finding out which Hollywood celebrity is doing whom. I have only flicked a few pages when I hear a guttural groan from the cabin. I jump to my feet and see Mr. Weiss clutching his chest, right where the heart is.

Oh my God, oh my God!

I yell out to Ryan at the top of my voice and then rush to help Mr. Weiss. I have no idea if Ryan has heard me or not, but I step straight into First-Aid mode.

‘Can you speak?’ I ask Mr. Weiss.

He can’t, but he makes it extremely clear that he is in excruciating pain. I bring his seat a little more upright and start unbuttoning his shirt buttons, whilst turning around to see if Ryan is anywhere to be seen. He is on his way.

Thank God.

When he arrives I don’t need to explain the situation as it is obvious.

I take charge and bark, ‘Get the defibrillator, and see if there is a doctor onboard!’

We have a heart defibrillator onboard these days. Apparently if the heart goes into defibrillation this machine is the one device the patient needs. Forget all those TV medical shows where the patient clutches their chest, stops breathing, has no pulse, and a few thumps on the chest is all it takes to magically bring the patient to consciousness. ‘Thank you for saving my life, Doc,’ the patient would then say. The chances of that happening in real life are about the same as the actor portraying the patient winning an Academy Award for his performance.

Ryan races away as I try to make Mr. Weiss as comfortable as I can. He is still conscious, I tell myself, trying to feel strong.

Just then I feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn to see the concerned, yet reassuring face of Dean.

‘Danielle, I am a medical doctor. I’ll take over from here. Let your manager know I am here. Please do bring the defibrillator, but hurry back because I need your help.’

I don’t have time to think. I scurry toward Ryan.

We return to Dean – sorry Dr. Dean – and find him kneeling next to Mr. Weiss, talking to him in a soft and reassuring voice whilst checking his pulse. Dean subtly acknowledges our return and continues to monitor his patient. Mr. Weiss appears to no longer be in pain, but is still clutching his chest and looks exhausted.

Dean turns to us, ‘I am positive he has had a heart-attack, but it appears to be over now. Please keep the defib handy. If you could bring me an oxygen bottle and some extra blankets, that would be great.’

I jump in, ‘I’ll get them’.

When I return I assist Dean in hooking up the oxygen to Mr. Weiss while Ryan places the blankets over him. ‘I’ll see if we can get onto Global Lifeline,’ Ryan tells Dr. Dean and then leaves.

Global Lifeline is, as the name infers, a medical response organisation that we can get in touch with in situations just like this. Dean has obviously liaised with Ryan to inform the flight deck of the state of affairs. I’ve been in a couple of medical emergencies before. Each time we have diverted to the nearest airport, making sure that the appropriate medical facilities are nearby. This time we are in the middle of nowhere. A million different questions are going through my mind. I could ask any one of them to Dean, but instead I just sit by his side. Although I am not really doing anything, I am there. If he needs my help, he will ask.

Ryan returns to tell Dean that the flight crew is trying to call Global Lifeline and that they will relay the information when they have an answer.

‘I just need to pass on some additional information to the pilots. Now, Dr. Weily, you are a medical doctor?’

Dean replies, ‘That’s right. I’m a GP, a general practitioner.’

Ryan continues with a series of questions, obviously intended to cover us legally and ethically.

I see that Mr. Weiss is very drowsy, but appears stable, so I duck away to get a glass of water for both Ryan and Dean.

While I am away, I go to the boss’s work station and look at his copy of the passenger list.

4J – Dr. Dean Weily.

I know the name Weily is reasonably common, but I have usually seen it spelled ‘Wiley’, ‘Willey’, ‘Wyley’, and ‘Wylie’, but rarely ‘Weily’, the same spelling as Danny’s surname. I am so curious to ask Dean whether he’s related to Danny, but I know that now is not the appropriate time to ask.

Dean and Ryan decide to move the passenger in 5K to 4J, so Dean can sit next to Mr. Weiss and monitor him as well as keep an eye on the oxygen cylinders. Each bottle lasts for just over an hour, and we still have a number of hours left to finish with this trip. With Dean sitting in the window seat, it makes it very difficult for me to communicate with him, although I give him all the assistance I possibly can in making Mr. Weiss comfortable. I even forgo my time-off to help.

At one point the call-light comes on, and I investigate. Mrs.Vandenberg wants to know what all the noise and commotion was about. When I tell her that a man has just had a heart attack, but he seems OK now, she says, without one morsel of empathy, ‘Can you keep the noise down then?’

When we do another meal service before landing, I contemplate doing something evil. I think about getting some eye-drops and putting a few drops in Her Majesty’s meal. I have heard this has no long-term health effects, but acts as one almighty instant laxative. As wicked as some of my thoughts can be and as intense as my disdain for this woman is, I just can’t go through with it.