American Air Refuses Oxygen to Dying Woman, Then 3 Equipment Failures

[DandyDon]

"It seems that the news story I quoted here was apparently mostly based on uneducated statements from family members and may not have been at all accurate. American did publish their version of the story later, and I am inclined to believe their explanations.

I am not asking that the thread be pulled, however - as the discussion is interesting, and it also serves as a learning experience about believing anything we see in the news - much sill me posting it."

News reports are not known for their validity, but if this story is even similar to the truth - damn!
1-The FA refused to supply Oxygen when the distressed passenger requested it.
2-When other passengers "became agitated," the FA finally got out an O2 tank, but it was empty.
3-Two doctors and two nurses were aboard and tried to administer oxygen from a second tank, which also was empty.
4-A nurse tried CPR, to no avail. A "box," possibly a defibrillator, also was applied but didn't function effectively.
5-Asked for the plane to "land right away so I can get her to a hospital," and the pilot agreed to divert to Miami, 45 minutes away. But she died, was pronounced dead by one of the doctors, and the flight continued to Kennedy International Airport without stopping in Miami, with the woman's body moved to the floor of the first-class section and covered with a blanket.

I am appalled. Yeah, the woman had heart disease and may have died anyway, but this strikes me as pathetically poor treatment as well as safety equipment preparation.

From: The Associated Press: Relative Complains After Death on Flight

Relative Complains After Death on Flight

By RICHARD PYLE – 6 hours ago

NEW YORK (AP) — An American Airlines passenger died after a flight attendant told her he couldn't give her any oxygen and then tried to help her with faulty equipment, including an empty oxygen tank, a relative said.

The airline confirmed the flight death and said medical professionals had tried to save the passenger, Carine Desir, who was returning home to Brooklyn from Haiti.

Desir, who had heart disease, died of natural causes, medical examiner's office spokeswoman Ellen Borakove said Sunday.

Desir had complained of not feeling well and being very thirsty on the Friday flight from Port-au-Prince after she ate a meal, according to Antonio Oliver, a cousin who was traveling with her and her brother Joel Desir. A flight attendant gave her water, he said.

A few minutes later, Desir said she was having trouble breathing and asked for oxygen, but a flight attendant twice refused her request, Oliver said Sunday in a telephone interview.

After the flight attendant refused to administer oxygen to Desir, she became distressed, pleading, "Don't let me die," Oliver recalled.

Other passengers aboard Flight 896 became agitated over the situation, he said, and the flight attendant, apparently after phone consultation with the cockpit, tried to administer oxygen from a portable tank and mask, but the tank was empty.

Two doctors and two nurses were aboard and tried to administer oxygen from a second tank, which also was empty, Oliver said.

Desir was put on the floor, and a nurse tried CPR, to no avail, Oliver said. A "box," possibly a defibrillator, also was applied but didn't function effectively, he said.

"I cannot believe what is happening on the plane," he said, sobbing. "She cannot get up, and nothing on the plane works."

Oliver said he then asked for the plane to "land right away so I can get her to a hospital," and the pilot agreed to divert to Miami, 45 minutes away. But during that time, Desir died, Oliver said.

"Her last words were, 'I cannot breathe,'" he said.

Desir, 44, was pronounced dead by one of the doctors, Joel Shulkin, and the flight continued to Kennedy International Airport without stopping in Miami, with the woman's body moved to the floor of the first-class section and covered with a blanket, Oliver said.

American Airlines spokeswoman Sonja Whitemon wouldn't comment Sunday on Oliver's claims of faulty medical equipment. Shulkin, through his attorney, Justin Nadeau, declined to comment on the incident out of respect for Desir's family.

 

[Kim]

That sounds horrific!!! :11: Good grief.....

 

[tstormdiver]

Not meaning to be insensitive at all, to the victim's family, but with the way the airlines are cutting back & squeezing everything to make more profit, is this really surprising? You can only cut back so much before it comes back & bites you "where the sun don't shine". Passenger comfort & care is one of the lowest priorities they have unless you want to pay out the $ for regular first class- in which case, there's still no guarantee, alls the airline want to do is get you from point A to point B as per the contract (ticket):deal: & then be rid of you. To the airline executives, you're not much more than baggage anyway. Of course:11doh:, the victim deserved to be heeded when she first complained & asked for aid.

 

[DivingPrincessE]

Yup I heard about that this morning. I smell a lawsuit brewin'. My local radio station said this morning, "a Desir is about to own American Airlines"

 

[Kim]

But surely if there is stuff on a plane like O2 tanks and defib equipment it's just part of the general checklist to make sure it's full/working? Shouldn't that be a given?

I didn't know they were allowed to cut back on safety. This isn't about whether you get free drinks or a meal for crying out loud!

 

[D_B]

I don't think the airlines cutting back should have anything to do with having oxygen in a tank that they are already carrying .. It's not a service that you pay for (paying first class wouldn't have got you any oxygen ether) It's a safety issue

I am sorry for her familly that will always think *if only ... *

 

[tonka97]

1-The FA refused to supply Oxygen when the distressed passenger requested it.
2-When other passengers "became agitated," the FA finally got out an O2 tank, but it was empty.
3-Two doctors and two nurses were aboard and tried to administer oxygen from a second tank, which also was empty.
4-A nurse tried CPR, to no avail. A "box," possibly a defibrillator, also was applied but didn't function effectively.
5-Asked for the plane to "land right away so I can get her to a hospital," and the pilot agreed to divert to Miami, 45 minutes away. But she died, was pronounced dead by one of the doctors, and the flight continued to Kennedy International Airport without stopping in Miami, with the woman's body moved to the floor of the first-class section and covered with a blanket.

Negligent homicide.

Using the reasonable person test, the airline's CEO is culpable.

Or else, chase the buck around and around, until everyone retires to Costa Rica.

 

[TSandM]

I hate to say it, but it sounds as though all the O2 in the world wasn't going to change the outcome here. You are not in good shape if you have a big cardiac event on an airplane. The time constraints of landing an airliner are simply not compatible with treatment and survival of a critical illness, unless you are extraordinarily lucky.

I had the interesting experience of being aboard an international airliner a few years back when a passenger had an MI. There were four doctors on board -- me, an ER doc; a critical care specialist, a pediatric critical care specialist, and an ID guy. (He got to go sit down and finish the movie ). The equipment on board allowed us to diagnose that his heart rate was extremely slow and that his blood pressure was low. We started an IV and gave fluids rapidly, and discovered to our horror that all the plane had on it was ONE CUP of IV fluid. When that was gone, it was gone! We had an AED, which is the thing that allows lay people to administer shock, but it had no readout that would allow us to make a real diagnosis of what was wrong. They had a few code meds, but in single doses; we gave one dose of something to speed his heart rate up, but that was all there was.

We were caught over North Africa, looking for an airport that could take a fully loaded 747, a town that could house 400 extra people, and had a hospital that could provide critical care. Meeting all those parameters is difficult in North Africa, and we ended up turning around and going back to Malta.

It was a real eye-opener about how little is on an airplane to try to save someone's life with.

 

[D_B]

Not much you can do in that case
.. but you would hope that what little you do have, is in working order

 

[tstormdiver]

I don't think the airlines cutting back should have anything to do with having oxygen in a tank that they are already carrying .. It's not a service that you pay for (paying first class wouldn't have got you any oxygen ether) It's a safety issue

I am sorry for her familly that will always think *if only ... *

I do agree it is safety issue. Sometimes (& it has been seen time & time again) by trying to make that extra buck, corporations will negate, ignore or just "let slide by"some of typical safety standards. Sorry, by cutting back, I was referring to the often overworked, underpaid employees (morale isn't the greatest amongst these people) that would have normally done the maintenance & servicing of the safety equipment. Perhaps a case of too much to do & not enough resources or motivation to get it done. Or if it was to be done by an outside contractor, then it was most likely a bare bones contractor that doesn't mind to let this or that slip by because they are the lowest bidder. By my mention of the first class, I was referring that those passengers would normally be listened to earlier & responded to quicker (that's generally what they're paying for), but when it comes to a medical emergency, that should be top priority (perhaps a case of "wolf" being cries too many times by other passengers in the past, to get attention, I don't know). You are quite correct, with the malfunction of the safety equipment, it still doesn't guarantee safety, regardless of what class you're in.