There’s an update.
After Dr. Erin Nance went viral for her video complaining that American Airlines failed even to acknowledge that she prevented a transatlantic diversion by treating a sick passenger and then letting that sick passenger sleep in her lie-flat business class seat, American Airlines…and British Airways…have finally responded.
Even though her flight was operated by American Airlines, Nance purchased her ticket through British Airways. With the help of American Airlines, she was refunded $2,145.52 for the downgrade (when she gave up her business class seat, she was placed in the last row of economy class). American Airlines also provided some additional frequent flyer miles (unspecified amount).
Even with American Airlines (and British Airways) finally making things right, Nance is wondering whether to fly with AA again:
“While I have accounts with several airlines, including American, I’m more likely to choose companies that value and respect medical professionals.
I initially hesitated to post on TikTok, hoping the airline would take the initiative to rectify the situation. Ultimately, it’s about the airline’s responsibility to acknowledge and appreciate those who go out of their way to assist others.”
Some have criticized Nance for not really being a “Good Samaritan” by demanding “compensation” for her services, but I very much agree with Nance here…her actions avoided a diversion and she acted in the interests of the airline and the other passengers onboard, not necessarily herself.
It is right and proper to recognize that she should have been refunded for not traveling in business class when she purchased a business class ticket. I am happy to hear, even if came only after immense public pressure, that AA and BA made this right.
The original story is below.
A doctor who attended to a sick patient multiple times and then gave up her business class seat for that same patient so that the flight would not have to divert claims she has not even been offered a thank you from American Airlines, let alone been made right for her sacrifice.
Doctor Gives Up Business Class Seat For Sick Patient She Was Asked To Treat Onboard American Airlines Flight
Dr. Erin Nance is an orthopedic hand surgeon and operates a social media platform aimed at helping women deal with chronic health issues. She and her husband were flying to Europe on American Airlines and about an hour into the flight, a flight attendant asked if there was a doctor onboard.
She volunteered and was brought back to economy class to attend to a passenger, who had fainted. The female passenger returned to her seat, appeared stable, and so Nance returned to her seat. But less than hour later, Nance was summoned again to attend to the same woman. This time, the woman was lying down on the floor outside the lavatory and claimed she could not get up.
As the captain prepared to divert to Nova Scotia, Nance offered to let the woman lie down in her business class seat. In fact, she and her husband volunteered to move to economy class out of compassion for the sick passenger and to avoid a diversion.
She was placed in the last row of economy class in seats that did not recline.
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished?
After the flight, she asked American Airlines for a refund or “a future business class experience” and was instructed to fill out a customer service form online, which she did. But a month has passed and she has heard nothing back.
View From The Wing wonders, “The doctor did volunteer her seat! It’s the right thing to do, she thought. Maybe she shouldn’t be compensated for that?” and I agree…to an extent.
Ultimately, American Airlines does not owe her anything legally. But it really is just the latest example of no good deed going unpunished. Let’s review:
- Nance cared for the sick passenger…twice
- Nance offered up her seat so that the plane would not have to divert
- That saved AA tens of thousands of dollars, at a minimum
For all who find her actions (in demanding compensation) tacky, I find it far more tacky that American Airlines did not promptly reach out and properly thank her.
I guess she should be happy the patient did not sue her?
Why is it that doctors (and nurses) are expected to volunteer their time for free onboard?
CONCLUSION
A doctor shares of helping a sick passenger on an American Airlines transatlantic flight and then giving up her business class seat so the patient could rest and the flight would not have to divert.
If there is truth to her story (and I see no reason to doubt it), then American Airlines should make this right…doctors should be encouraged to step forward when called, not disincentivized from doing the right thing.
This could have been such an easy PR win for American Airlines…
American’s pathetic excuse for management (never leadership) continues to shine as a beacon of ineptitude to companies aspiring to drive away business. AA really is skilled at this. Must be the AmericaWest DNA.
You hit the nail right on the head. No further explaination needed.
Christian,
You hit the nail on the head. As a recently retired employee who has experienced the effects of USAir management, they are running and ruining American Airlines into the ground. Before the merger with USAir, American was not perfect but was a more “customer friendly” airline. This article is nothing but an embarrassment.
Haven’t we read enough about fake service dogs, emotional support animals, wheel chairs who don’t need ? I don’t believe giving business seat to someone miraculously heal someone who seriously needed medical attention. Ill passengers are the ones who should compensate the doctor, not.
It’s interesting to speculate about whether this passenger was faking it.
Faking it might be a bit of a stretch, but I do think there was some exaggeration involved.
This woman laid down on the floor and was unable to get up to sit back down in her coach seat. But when presented with the prospect of laying down in a lie flat J seat, she somehow was able to muster the energy to not only get up, but walk all the way from the last row of coach to the business class cabin.
There’s also no account of any medical assistance waiting for her upon landing in Europe. Maybe there was, maybe there wasn’t. But I’ll go out on a limb and say she just walked off the plane and went about her day.
Great article.
1) She gave the seat willingly (I mean, most doctors are very giving people, so it makes sense…the money they make barley compensates the time and effort they spend helping people and saving lives…)
2) AA has no requirement to compensate her.
3) But… “This could have been such an easy PR win for American Airlines…”
@Moe … +1 . Outstanding #3 conclusion .
“the money they make barley compensates the time and effort they spend helping people and saving lives…”
It’s interesting how this relates to a recent discussion about the poor salaries that FA’s typically make for most of their careers. FA’s make little money due to competition: Lots of people apply to be an FA so the airlines can pay less. If not for the unions, FA’s would be on food stamps.
I review all of my medical bills and I can assure you that Doctors make good money although certainly, like pilots, they take massive debt and years or study to get to the point of making that good income.
That said, basic manners and decency suggest that her voluntarily giving up her seat should have meant she would be compensated later. She shouldn’t have had to ask “If I give up my seat, can you arrange for me to get a flight credit?”
Doctors (and the rest of us) don’t HAVE to do the right thing sometimes, but in a civilized society we should be incentivized to do so.
Unfortunately if you accept compensation the good Samaritan law becomes void. (which i disagree with, but that’s the law). you are then fully liable to lawsuits.
She may not have phrased it correctly, but I wouldn’t call this compensation since she did not get the product she paid for. More like a refund of her ticket…
Do you have a source for this?
I thought the protection for medical providers on flights came from the Aviation Medical Assistance Act 1998. To my knowledge there is no wording that describes an exclusion for accepting compensation for the care rendered.
Even if there is such wording it seems contentious to claim that being compensated for giving up your seat is the same thing as being compensated for providing medical care.
the AMAA doesn’t cover international flights.
Attention whore for making the media aware of the story.
Maybe, but maybe it was out of desperation after hearing nothing from AA after 30 days.
Seems more like someone you can’t relate to in that they help other people. They just don’t want to get hosed for being such good people. I don’t blame them. You and I differ on this.
She’s not owed anything from anyone. AA didn’t promise her anything so there’s not story here. If she was promised something and didn’t get it then I’d have sympathy. And as staradmiral said, if AA gave her money or miles it could be considered compensation, then the Good Samaritan law wouldn’t apply.
Nance is cast in two different roles in her story. First the good Samaritan doctor that provided assistance and advice that American followed to avoid the diversion. The second role of paying passenger that lost her seat to avoid a costly diversion. They are not the same, and as passenger she deserves compensation.
Agreed.
@Maryland and @Matthew, agreed.
I watched her video, and it seems as though the crew did a lot to show their appreciation – frequently checked in, offered F&B, gave a bottle of bubbly, etc. They probably documented the heck out of the incident and passed it on to management. It’s corporate AA who dropped the ball. 🙁
I am sorry, AA does not owe her anything. Yes, sometimes we feel a thank you note would be nice but I would not expect that from American. Nobody asked her to give up her seat, she actually did it to avoid a diversion that would probably screw up her travel plans. Thus, it was a “win win” situation and now she wants to use it in her favor.
A thank you note is in her personal favor?
@santastico- you’re messed up or just looking for a reaction. If you don’t get it then I hope the next time you’re on a flight to somewhere you need to be, I hope you’re flight gets diverted because no doctor wants to give up there seat. I hope your plans get completely jacked. That might teach you a different perspective.
They most airlines do nothing for helping..including Delta!!
Avoiding a diversion is huge. She should be getting some generous ff miles at any rate.
Amazing how AA fails to make hay on a good pr story that gets put in their lap.
Giving a sick person a lie flat seat is huge. The Doctor has class. The airline doesn’t.
It’s so hard to get an appointment with a doctor anymore that it might be best to fly and say you don’t feel well to get checked out for free in flight. The newest flying hack….free medical care.
Even better, book your flight out of Cleveland, Raleigh or Rochester, MN to any destination which has a medical conference. That way you have good odds of getting Cleveland Clinic, Duke, or Mayo doctors on your flight. Top notch medical care for the cost of a limited economy seat.
It’s funny because it might work.
There is one problem with it though…
I’m a doctor, and I have responded to these types of requests for help. It turns out that on most flights there are actually multiple medical professionals. When the request for help goes out there is a certain personality profile that wants to jump up, rush over and loudly announce “I’m a doctor! What seems to be the problem?”.
Not all doctors have that personality. Some of us wait for a second, to let the glory hound rush in. Then we approach the scene to quietly assess the situation and see if additional help is needed, while the first doctor shouts out his or her credentials for everyone to hear.
The point of it is, if you’re the patient in this scenario, you’d better be comfortable with having a doctor who is, even among doctors, considered an outlier of a narcissist.
This hack will entail casual conversation to determine the doctor’s credentials.
Not a surgeon from Cleveland Clinic? Please step aside and have the FA request a more qualified doctor. (I’m joking of course, I think?).
Lol
No one will be doing this.
Agreed with you Matthew.
Better than this guy.
Her statement is remarkably self-important. “Values medical professionals?” STFU.
She should have asked first if there were any non-revs in business class do be downgraded.
Lufthansa Group has a good framework for managing these emergencies. Medical professionals can register and verify credentials ahead of time and their specialty and willingness to assist is noted on the manifest. Once registration is complete, they send information on available equipment and protocols as well as a helpful textbook and the opportunity to attend aviation medicine classes in Frankfurt, Munich or Zurich (most in German but some in English). They also provide information on legal liability and provide insurance in case of a claim. My understanding is that most good faith acts are immune from liability but the precise details of liability depends on the routing (EU/US/CH/etc).
I have been called once on a transatlantic flight and thankfully the passenger was fine. I got a nice note from LHG as well as some miles and a voucher for my next flight. I’ve responded to a few emergencies on multiple airlines and was impressed how Lufthansa handled this.
https://www.lufthansa.com/ae/en/doctor-on-board
Matt
I am sure this generate some interesting comments – but I have attended to my share in inflight medical emergencies and have not only saved some lives (like a teenager who overdosed over the Pacific – think “Pulp Fiction”) and prevented some major diversions… but the airlines approach to this “free labor” is very concerning. I have given up entire flights of my own time to “babysit” sick passengers – who were probably too hung over to fly or passengers with known significant medical problems who should not have been flying (or forgot to pack their meds).
Yes, we think “Good Sam” laws protect us – but again, just reflecting the general perspective that our time and skills are always available for free is a problem…. I know many colleagues who just rollover and go back to sleep
Maybe a topic for you to write about and explore?
Yes indeed. It’s an interesting dilemma.