M’sian Doctor Recalls Manually Ventilating Baby For 2 Hours On Helicopter While Sleep-Deprived From Manpower Shortage

A recent post has caught the attention of many netizens after a woman shared an experience from nine years ago, when she had to escort a baby on a helicopter.

Qistina (@qissesky) took to Threads to recall the moment, saying she was post-call and still wearing the previous night’s scrubs when she stepped in to help escort the baby as her colleagues were unable to do so due to a manpower shortage.

Malaysian shares challenges she faced while escorting baby on helicopter

Qistina also recalled how she had to manually ventilate the baby throughout the helicopter ride as there was no portable ventilator available.

“I was on my post-call day, wearing the same scrubs since the night before. I hadn’t slept for more than 24 hours. No other seniors could escort the baby as we were short on manpower. They either had to be on call that day, were post-call the day before, or were on call the next day.

“We didn’t have a portable ventilator, so I had to manually ventilate the baby using an Ambu bag for two hours, plus the journey to Kuching. The baby had bilateral chest tubes in place and was on inotropes. And the mother was lying on a stretcher under the pilot’s seat,” her post read.

“It took the recent helicopter crash for the Health Ministry to take notice”

Qistina also recalled how difficult it was to keep manually ventilating the baby while she was severely sleep-deprived and exhausted.  She said a nurse had to keep a close eye on her throughout the journey in case she became too fatigued to continue.

“My nurse had to keep a close eye on me in case my hand stopped manually ventilating the baby due to severe lack of sleep and fatigue. She also had to make sure all the lines were functioning and that the chest tubes did not become dislodged.

“Claim? I didn’t even know we had that. The hospital covered my one-night stay in Sarawak and my flight ticket back after I submitted the invoice. I thought all of that was normal.”

Reflecting on the experience, Qistina said doctors are often expected to push through difficult situations because they want to do what is best for their patients.

She also expressed sadness that it took a recent helicopter crash that claimed the lives of her fellow healthcare workers for the Ministry of Health (MOH) to take the issue seriously.

“None of us signed anything before we got on that helicopter. The thought that the helicopter might crash never crossed my mind. What were we worried about? Whether the baby would make it safely to Kuching.

“It’s saddening that it took a helicopter crash and the passing of our comrades for the ministry to take notice. Let’s create more awareness. Change is long overdue.”

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Also read: FDS Crash: Sarawak Govt Gives RM100k to Each Victim’s Family & Covers Their Children’s Education Fees