It's been a long year of recovery for 68-year-old Shuva Seller, who suffered a stroke at her home on Martha's Vineyard last summer. But last weekend, she was determined to travel to Boston to say two words to the emergency responders who rushed her to Brigham and Women's Hospital: thank you.
"These people saved my life," Seller said as her voice quivered. "I can never repay them, but I can support them and be there if they ask."
Seller was among several hundred people who attended Boston MedFlight's annual patient reunion, which was held this Sunday for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The event was a chance for people who needed emergency transport to meet with the pilot and medical team who got them to treatment.
Seller said giving her Boston MedFlight team a hug brought a certain measure of closure to what happened.
"You know, they probably get hugs all the time from former patients, but it's all I have to give, really," she said. "And I thought about it a lot, and I thought of all the things that I've had in my life. I've been through cancer and a couple of other things. This is the one that has the most impact on me, because these people — who have no idea who I am or what I do — reached out and took care of me, and that is amazing."
Christina Guerrero, who suffered a brain hemorrage while exercising, also found closure at the Boston MedFlight reunion.
"I got to meet the people that got me in the right place at the right time," she said.
David Levesque, a paramedic who has been with Boston MedFlight for eight years, said he enjoys the opportunity to see patients who have made progress in their recovery.
"It's a good opportunity for the crews from a perspective of knowing that your work actually matters," he said. "And for the patients, you know, a lot of them actually have no recollection of what happened. So it's interesting to fill in those blanks."
The nonprofit organization was founded 38 years ago and is the region's primary provider of critical care medical transport, partnering with hospitals and first responders throughout the area. Boston MedFlight has eight ambulances, six medical helicopters and one jet which fly out of four bases: Hanscom Field in Bedford, along with airports in Lawrence, Mansfield and Plymouth.
Boston Medflight CEO Maura Hughes says altogether they care for over 7,000 patients each year. About half of those are ground transport, and the other half by air.
Hughes says the average patient bill for emergency transport is about $24,000, a bill that is often covered by insurance or offset by donations from philanthropists and the public.
"We provide $7 million in free care every year," she explains. "You know, for us, it's all about the patients, patient care and obviously the patients' families."
Disclaimer: MedFlight took this reporter to the hospital 10 years ago after a traumatic brain injury. A detailed account can be found here.
