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Feeling Ill? Stay On the Ground

Airlines, staff are only modestly equipped to respond to medical emergencies in the air

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Feb 27, 2008 5:55 PM CST
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(Newser) – In the wake of the death last week of a passenger on an American Airlines jet, one expert on in-flight health has this to say to sickly would-be travelers: “Do not fly.” Air travel can exacerbate illness, and though many airlines contract with ground-based medical support, flight attendants are not nurses, and airplanes often have only minimal medical equipment aboard, CNN reports.

Congress recently ordered all commercial passenger aircraft to carry defibrillators and robust first-aid kits, but the Federal Aviation Administration has no part in mid-air medical emergencies. Instead, companies such as Arizona-based MedAire maintain physicians and translation services on the ground to assist airborne staff. Problems to look out for? Respiratory conditions, stomach upset, cardiac episodes.

An automatic external defibrillator like the ones carried on commercial passenger aircraft.
An automatic external defibrillator like the ones carried on commercial passenger aircraft.   ((c) ernstl)
American Airlines planes sit at their gates at John F. Kennedy International Airport, in this Aug. 29, 2007 file photo in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow, file)
American Airlines planes sit at their gates at John F. Kennedy International Airport, in this Aug. 29, 2007 file photo in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow, file)   (Associated Press)
If you're under the weather, your best bet is stay out of the sky. (AP Photo/Lai Seng Sin)
If you're under the weather, your best bet is stay out of the sky. (AP Photo/Lai Seng Sin)   (Associated Press)
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On-board emergency turns tragic, and cause disputed
New York Times

 
death • illness • American Airlines • heart attack • flight attendants • oxygen • air travel • airsickness • MedAire

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