PHOTOS I : transportation for transplantation. Feb 16, 2009

Emily received THE CALL at about 7:30 am to come to UWMC in Seattle for her double lung transplant. Not your regular monday morning wake up call. We had a good plan in place and had been packed for a couple of weeks. A call was placed to a flight  service, which is based in the Portland area, about a hundred miles from Eugene. They prepped a plane, called in the pilots and  beat us to the Eugene airport by a few minutes. The last thing Emily did before leaving our house was to e-mail the announcement that there were donor lungs available and we were on our way to Seattle. When we arrived at the airport the pilots greeted us at the door, this is Emily and our pilot. She was remarkably calm and in control from the moment of the call until being wheeled into surgery for transplant a few hours later. Smiling the whole time. 

Our  chariot awaits. From the time we unloaded the car until we were at plane side, only about ten minutes elapsed. The First Officer is taking the luggage to the plane. Just like when you fly on United or Delta :)
Peg and Emily walking toward the jet holding hands to comfort each other, just holding on.  We would all be holding on tightly to each other for the next two weeks, for comfort and strength. This is a big moment that has been slowly approaching for many years. A lot of waiting and anticipating and now the reality of transplantation is coming closer by the minute. 
Emily waiting to board, the line and wait were not that long. It was sweet to have the plane there so timely. Transportation was our responsibility and a vital piece of the puzzle. Our guidelines were to be in Seattle not more than three hours after the call, then the medical team would take over. Seattle is three hundred miles north of Eugene with the last miles some of the worst traffic in the north west.  Flying fast was our only option.
The girls settled in just after take off. This plane is equipped for serious medical transport and there could be a stretcher set up where the bags are. If that were the case there would be a flight nurse and respiratory therapist. Happily we did not need this,  just a really fast plane, on call 24/7.
Emily and Keith after take off, looking aft. I am sitting by the emergency exit. The safety talk was perfect. The First Officer came back, pointed at the door, said if needed, I should pull the door, throw it out, then you and your family get out. Fasten your seat belts, here we go! 

Emily's health now left her exhausted most of the time. Walking more than a few yards was a real challenge and she needed  supplementary oxygen almost full time. She fell asleep almost as soon as we were airborne. 

                                            Catching a little nap on the way to get new lungs.
This is a photo from the car as we neared the hospital, which is the cluster of large buildings. We are traveling in a big Lincoln Town car driven by Sergi [ my name for him] from Russia, I think. After, a perfect flight the jet landed at Boeing field which is not all that far from the hospital. We had arranged for a town car as they are considered more reliable than a taxi and fortunately we did not need an ambulance. The car was waiting, we taxied right up next to it and the pilots had us and our luggage out in a flash and they were telling the driver to move it. He didn't say much and we all piled in. I was in the front seat, he looked at me still not saying much, so I told him go to the UW Hospital. Still no response. UW Hospital, Fast, now.

 NO response. [I thought my head might explode at that moment] Finally, he said, have address?  I ran to the trunk found a card and gave it to him, this didn't seem to help, so I tried I-5 north. His English and my Russian were about equal, not so great. Communication like this is why we had the Cold War. Fortunately, we could see the highway from where we were and with bit more pointing and grunting  we were on our way. From then on the drive was smooth with none of the feared traffic.  A heavy foot more than made up for any language barrier and the hospital was soon in sight and we rolled right up to the front door. As I grabbed the luggage, Peg was taking care of paying for the car, and since her Russian is about the same as mine that went pretty well[a story for another day.] 

This is a big hospital and the entry lobby and admission area is usually teeming with people, but not this Monday. There was hardly a soul in sight, and that was a little unsettling. But the admission clerks were waiting for us and sprang into action. Almost immediately a very serious nurse appeared and very politely but firmly said that they wanted Emily upstairs in ICU....now! This most amazing day was really just beginning but had already been epic. Things fell right into place. When the call came Peg was already at work but not yet x-raying her first patient. I called her and as planned she immediately left work. Her co-workers were great. I called the jet and it came instantly, the town car was there, no traffic, no lines in the lobby, [we finally realized it was a holiday and this cleared things out], and wonderfully the transplant surgeon that Emily had been working with was in town and available,  it was even sunny out, a gorgeous day. Things lined up beautifully. Sweet serendipity. The nurse took charge and it was off to ICU where they first part of the transplant team was waiting and the journey went into a new phase.