When she upgraded her seat onboard an American Airlines flight home to Austin from Cancun on Sunday, Seton Medical Center ICU nurse Megan Sconzert didn’t think she would be thrust into duty.
Sconzert, who was returning from a bachelorette party weekend, and a few passengers who are also health care professionals, came to the rescue of a male passenger who experienced a lack of oxygen to his tissues to sustain his bodily functions, a condition called hypoxia, Austin NBC affiliate KXAN reported.
According to the station, Sconzert sprung into action when she heard a passenger utter, “He has a pulse.”
The unnamed patient, who reportedly had different medications in his bag, was treated with two doses of naloxone, or simply Narcan, by a makeshift five-person medical team that consisted of Sconzert, a pediatric ICU nurse practitioner, a surgical oncologist, an ER/prison nurse and a trained first responder.
The first responder performed rescue breathing while Sconzert set up an IV, KXAN reported.
Civilian passengers like Samuel Coon also assisted the health care workers.
The 23-year-old Coon, who sat between his father and the victim, held a flashlight during the procedure.
Sconzert said the patient “held so many random objects that I handed him” and remained “calm and collected” throughout the ordeal.
KXAN reported that the effort was successful, and the flight was diverted to New Orleans, where the man was purportedly taken to the hospital.
The aircraft then resumed its journey to Austin.
“We wouldn’t have been successful in stabilizing this patient without the teamwork,” Sconzert told the station. “I am eternally grateful that so many medical [personnel] were on this flight and sitting in such close proximity.”
A representative with American Airlines confirmed the incident.
The health care professionals; however, couldn’t determine what exactly caused the passenger to suffer hypoxia, KXAN reported.
