July 12, 2018

From inflight movie to real-life hero: new grad saves life over Atlantic Ocean

Dean LaBarba, MD, is a 2018 Loma Linda University graduate.

Finding something to do on an airplane has a new meaning for Dean LaBarba, MD. While traveling in June from Zurich to Los Angeles on a 12-hour flight, he ended up saving the life of a fellow passenger after she abruptly collapsed. 

The new 2018 graduate from LLU School of Medicine was returning home with his wife, Ivy, after a celebratory trip to Sicily.

Approximately two hours into the Swiss International Airlines flight, LaBarba was watching a movie when a nearby female passenger lost consciousness.

It didn’t take more than seconds for LaBarba to put on his new MD hat and leap into action. He could find no pulse, and her body was cold to the touch. …

Read the full heroic tale at news.llu.edu.

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