Onward Healthcare Travel RN, Billy Ray Wilson

Travel nurses are accustomed to flying more than the average person, and of course, they’re very accustomed to working directly with those whose health often requires immediate professional attention. But how often do travel nurses have to utilize their medical expertise during a flight?

For one travel nurse who has been working with Onward Healthcare since 2005, the answer is; just the other day. When Billy Ray Wilson prepared to leave his home town of Atlanta on October 28^th for his next assignment in Houston, he found nothing out of the ordinary about his traveling plans. Even the flight delays caused by inclement weather weren’t that big of a deal. When offered a seat on an earlier flight, Billy Ray graciously opted out in favor of a business class seat on his original flight, and it’s a good thing he did.

An hour into the flight, Billy Ray noticed the flight attendants acting frantic about something near the lavatory. When one of the flight attendants reached a shaky hand to the intercom and requested the attention of a healthcare professional, he calmly approached the front of the cabin and immediately went into nurse mode.

He saw a young man lying on the floor, cold, clammy, not breathing and unresponsive. With the stethoscope and blood pressure cuff he keeps in a travel case at all times, Billy Ray checked the man’s vital signs and asked all the right questions about his medical history without missing a beat. Shortly after Billy Ray began CPR, the young man regained consciousness and was able to sit up much to the relief of his wife and child. Billy Ray stayed with the ailing young man and kept track of his heart rate until the plane made a priority landing where paramedics were waiting.

Billy Ray’s flight turned out to be one he will never forget, and a demonstration of why travel nurses are so important. Whether they’re on the ground or en route to their next travel nursing assignment, their talents are always appreciated by the people who need them the most.