My life saved by three unknown Vietnamese girls

by Norman Dorfman (Japan)

A leap into the unknown Vietnam

Getting off a bus travelling from Mui Ne to Nha Trang, I experienced severe and continuing chest pains, compounded by breathing difficulty and fever. Checking into a hotel, I assured myself that all would be well after a night of restorative sleep. However, in the morning, my condition was much worse; the manager strongly suggested that I seek medical attention-and possibly hospitalization in Hanoi, as Nha Trang was lacking in doctors I could effectively communicate with. I had an excellent compartment on the evening train, and assumed that the 20-hour journey would pass uneventfully. I had a clean bed, with starched white sheets, a continuing supply of tea and light meals and frequent visits from concerned crew members monitoring my condition. However, I had to endure 20 hours without sleep and make the best of the situation. I smiled when the train pulled into Hanoi train station; I have been there on previous trips and remembered that it was centrally located, with eager taxi drivers, always ready to transport visitors wherever they wanted to go. My plan was to enlist the aid of a taxi driver to take me to a reputable hospital. I was the last passenger to exit the train, and by this time the platform was mostly deserted. After taking three steps, I suddenly collapsed, hardly able to move or breathe. Perhaps you are familiar with the expression that when one is dying, his life passes in front of him. I will not say with absolute certainty that this is always the case, but memories from long ago and experiences I had long since forgotten were swirling around in my mind. But uppermost was this thought: unless one is the victim of a fatal accident, a victim of a crime, commits suicide or is an unlucky victim of misadventure, probably 95-99% of people will die in bed-perhaps in a hospital, perhaps in a hospice, perhaps at home, with a loving family in attendance. What went through my mind was the thought that my demise would be extremely undignified-dying alone on the platform of a train station; hopefully, it would make the news and the diverse group of people I met over years of travel in about 100 countries would read the story and- hopefully- most would remember me fondly. During my travels I have searched for epigrams, proverbs or instructive maxims that would broaden my horizons. I remembered-vaguely-some words long ago forgotten: Nothing that novels contrive is so artificial as its ending-real lives rarely end with artistic finality-either they are rudely interrupted or they end in a slow fade that has none of the rounded perfection of a well-written last page. Sinking into oblivion, I felt soft-but strong- hands on my shoulders and opened my eyes to see three Vietnamese girls trying to pull me into a standing position. They were physically small- certainly not more than 45 kilograms each and appeared to be either high school or college students. "We help, we help" appeared to be the extent of their English ability. With strenuous effort, they supported me until we reached a taxi, got in and took me to the French Hospital of Hanoi. Stabilizing in the emergency room, the doctor looked at me with disbelief, shook his head and let me know that I had absolutely no business taking that train in my condition and that I was near death on the platform. I was blindsided by a multi-vectored attack of massive proximal pulmonary embolism, right lower limb phlebitis, acute core pulmonale, atrial fibrillation and pluero pneumonia. How delightful. I spent two weeks in the hospital and was discharged in good health. I tried to locate my trio of saviors, but they were nowhere to be found. I would like to say that the theme of this story is actually what I learned from this episode and if the occasion arose, how I could rescue others . I finished a course in first aid, learned about how to execute the Heimlich Maneuver, how to use the AED, among many others Perhaps by saving my life, the girls motivated me to learn the skills that may one day be crucial in saving another.