HOUSTON — Travelers onboard a United Airlines flight last Thursday experienced a trip like no other.
The airplane left Houston and was en route to Boston, but about one hour into the flight, it diverted to Atlanta to save a man's life.
Flight attendants called for help on the plane. They said they needed a doctor fast.
"We all quickly stood up. All the physicians," Dr. Zeena Nawas said.
Nearly a dozen dermatologists were on that airplane. They were on their way to a conference. Two of them had internal medicine training.
Nawas, assistant professor of dermatology at Baylor College of Medicine, rushed to the man's side. He only spoke Arabic.
"I quickly started talking to him in our language," Nawas said. "He told me how he was experiencing chest pain, shortness of breath and (was) really sweaty."
Together with Dr. Muneeza Muhammad, they worked to stabilize him.
"When you're having a heart attack, time is money," Muhammad said. "Our entire goal, everyone on the plane, one mission is to get this patient stable and to be OK."
Doctors told the pilot he needed to land the plane. Thanks to the doctors' dedication and swift efforts, their patient is alive.
The patient's son, Ahmed, said his dad had a stent put in his heart last year and wonders what could have happened had these doctors not been onboard.
"We were so lucky that he had such a wonderful team like that on that flight," Ahmed said.
The doctors are also grateful they were in the right place at the right time.
"We're here to help patients, wherever it is. On the street, plane, in a hospital, which is ideal," Nawas said. "It was a beautiful act of humanity. That's what it was."
A true example of teamwork, says Ahmed.
"This is America. This is why this nation is so great," he said.