According to information from Vietnam Airlines, flight VN38 departed on September 5 from Copenhagen (Denmark) to Ho Chi Minh City.
About 10 hours after taking off, passenger N.L. D. L. (Vietnamese nationality) suddenly showed signs of labor. Immediately, the flight attendant team deployed first aid measures according to the emergency response procedure, and at the same time broadcast to search for medical-specialized passengers for support. The flight attendant team found 5 passengers who were doctors and nurses on the flight who volunteered to support the pregnant passenger.
Dr. Ho Khanh Thanh - General Planning Department, Cho Ray Hospital is one of the passengers participating in medical support on this special flight.
When I arrived, I initially thought the pregnant woman might be too worried, so she showed signs like a panic attack. But after examination, I saw the pregnant woman's abdomen bulging strongly, the mother had amniotic fluids. And when examined, I could touch the baby's head. At that time, I determined that this was really a labor situation and needed immediate treatment, and could not wait any longer," Dr. Thanh recalled.
The flight at that time was about 3 hours away from Vietnam. No delivery room. No obstetrics team. No familiar equipment in a hospital. But the baby couldn't wait.
On the plane at that time, there were also a doctor, a foreign nurse, a cardiology specialist and a Vietnamese pediatrician. No one was an obstetrician, but they all entered a race against time.
The flight crew quickly coordinated, arranging the business compartment area for the pregnant woman to lie down. In that unexpected situation, the mother's calmness became a lucky thing. When the doctor instructed her how to hold her breath and push in rhythm, the pregnant woman coordinated very well.
About 6-7 minutes after starting to feel better, the baby was born. One baby weighed about 1.3 kg.
At that time, the most important thing is to quickly help the baby. With premature babies, if it is prolonged, the risk of affecting the baby's breathing may increase," Dr. Thanh said.
The baby's crying echoed in the aircraft cabin. That moment also opened up another race: how to keep a premature baby warm and maintain a stable condition in conditions without adequate medical facilities?
The baby was placed skin to skin on the mother's chest. Even the umbilical cord, a very familiar item on the plane, was used in a way that no one thought of.
Without specialized straps to tie the umbilical cord, the medical team took the straps of the mask still in the sterile package to tie the umbilical cord before cutting.
After that, medical staff continued to take the IV line and infuse fluids to the mother. The pregnant woman's blood pressure at this time was about 110/70 mmHg.
Mother and baby are temporarily stable. But there are still more than 2 hours of flight ahead. If they continue to fly, when the plane arrives in Vietnam, the emergency team of Cho Ray Hospital can quickly receive them. But for a premature baby about 30 weeks old, the next 2 hours on the plane are still potentially risky.
After contacting, Myanmar agreed to land the plane. A decision was made not long after the baby's first cry sounded.
After the plane landed, passengers continued to stay on the plane while refueling to return to Vietnam. The mother and baby were taken to a hospital in Myanmar for further care.
Looking back at those special moments, what Dr. Thanh remembers most is the mother's calmness, the coordination of the flight crew and the medical staff who did not know each other but stood together with a pregnant woman in the most important moment.
An unexpected birth, in a "baby room" that no one was prepared for, but perhaps it will become a memory that those on the flight that day cannot forget.
