Dr Aisha Khatib Canadian doctor delivers 'Miracle' baby on flight

By Rek Hanibal Published on January 15, 2022
Dr Aisha Khatib Canadian doctor delivers 'Miracle' baby on flight

Dr Aisha Khatib, a professor at the University of Toronto, was about one hour into her Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Entebbe when the call went out. A Ugandan migrant worker travelling home from Saudi Arabia was about to deliver her first child.

Early at 35 weeks, the baby was born healthy and was named Miracle Aisha, after the doctor. Dr Khatib, bleary-eyed from a gruelling work schedule back in coronavirus-plagued Toronto, enjoyed a well-earned rest on the third leg of her trip.

But she did not hesitate when a voice on the intercom asked if there was a doctor aboard."I see a crowd of people gathered around the patient," Dr Khatib. At this point, she was assuming it was a critical situation, like a heart attack.

"As I got closer, see this woman lying on the seat with her head toward the aisle and feet towards the window. And the baby was coming out!"

After giving birth, the mother was brought to sit in business class. Two other passengers helped Khatib - an oncology nurse and a paediatrician from Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

The baby was crying "robustly", she said. Following a quick check, she passed the infant to the paediatrician for a closer inspection." I looked at the baby, and she was stable, and I looked at the mom, and she was OK," says Dr Khatib.

Rek Hanibal

Rek Hanibal

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