Dr Jilani, who hails from Bihar, has earned praise after he saved a person’s life mid-air on way to Doha. He believes that CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) is a technique that everyone should learn to administer to save lives during emergencies.
Sami Ahmad | TwoCircles.net
BIHAR – On November 2, 2021, Nadeem Zafar Jilani, an M.D. in paediatrics, was travelling to his workplace in Doha, Qatar from New Delhi after attending the funeral of his elder brother in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. An hour after the plane took off, Dr Jiliani saved a man’s life mid-air. He was later felicitated by the Indian Embassy in Qatar. While disembarking he was given standing ovation by the crew members of Vistara Airlines he was travelling in.
He was hotel-quarantined for two days after arriving in Doha. He received many calls of congratulations which included a personal call from Ambassador Dr Deepak Mittal. He was given a citation for his “timely intervention in saving a life on board Vistara flight to Doha” by the Indian Community Benevolent Forum under the patronage of the Embassy of India in Qatar.
Hailing from Kumhrauli village of Darbhanga district in Bihar, Dr Jilani narrated the incident with TwoCirlces.net from Doha. He said after the meals were over in the flight, he heard a sudden request from the crew for any doctor who was in the plane. He stood up and offered his services. He was taken to the door of the plane’s lavatory near business class. “A man around 45 years was lying flat, his shoes were stuck in the toilet’s washbasin. That man had turned blue. He was frothing, unconscious and had stopped breathing.”
Dr Jilani said, “That was a very crucial time. His pulse was dipping. There were very few signs of life. So, I asked the crew to take him to a broader place between aisles. He was pushed and pulled gently but there was no response from him. As a next step, I did cardiac massage – using our basic life support training. It took around 30 seconds and we got the first sign of life in him and he groaned. That was quite encouraging. I asked the crew to lift his legs which enabled blood supply to his brain. Then he started grasping. Since there was no way to know his sugar level, I asked the crew to give him some sugary syrup. He was given some juice. As he was coming back to life I went to my seat and took my stethoscope from my handbag and checked his heartbeat. By that time his pulse rate and blood pressure reached almost to normal.”
“I cannot express my feeling when I saw him walking because I was not sure about his life. Alhamdulillah, I came to help a man in the dire need of medical support.”
Dr Jilani was upgraded to the Business class by the crew as a gesture of gratitude and that he could be near the man who had fallen sick.
Dr Jilani, who loves and writes Urdu poetry, said that he could not know the detailed medical history of the patient who introduced himself as Santosh from Hyderabad. Santosh told him that he was working in Doha in the garment-stitching sector.
Dr Jilani said that he could not take the patient’s phone number as he was being given standing ovation and asked to be the first to leave. “I would try to contact him,” he said.
Dr Jilani said that in his career of over 25 years, he never had such a situation in the air. “We all must learn the basic life-saving procedure like cardiac massage and one need not be a medical doctor for it,” he said.
He said that in Britain they used to give training for CPR in the mosques and the same can be done in India. “Religious places too can be included for this purpose,” he said.
He said the crew on the aeroplane had an ambu-bag but that was not required. “But one should not wait for the ambulance and start CPR because we get only a few minutes to resuscitate.”
He further said that “CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) is taught in the schools but in practice, the common man gets a bit nervous.”
“After the chest compression, the next step is mouth-to-mouth breathing but one should be wary of Covi-19 situation too,” he said.
Dr Jilani cited the viral video of a doctor of forensic medicine who collapsed while dancing. “I am not certain if he was given CPR,” he said.
Dr Jilani got his school education from the once-famous Insan School at Kishanganj, Bihar. He moved to Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh where he did his MBBS and then M.D. in paediatrics. His qualifications include MRCPCH, CCT (Pediatrics) and FRCPCH. He is currently working as a senior attending physician at Sidra Child Advocacy Program in Doha. He has worked in reputed hospitals in the U.K. and Saudi Arabia. He has been a teacher at the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health.
While expressing his happiness over saving a life Dr Jilani read a couplet.
Yahi hai Ibadat Yahi deen o Iman
(This is worship, this is religion)
Ki Kaam Aaye Duniya Main Insan ke Insan
(That a human comes to the rescue of a human).
Sami Ahmad is a journalist based in Patna, Bihar. He tweets at @samipkb