Am I Wrong for Refusing to Volunteer as a Doctor on a Flight?

A man found himself in a heated exchange with a co-passenger when he refused to volunteer as a doctor on a long-haul flight that needed one. He had a good reason for doing so, but his co-passenger didn't think the same.

A doctor in his mid-30s was on a long-haul international flight. Before boarding the plane on his business class seat, he indulged in some liquor at the airport lounge.

What was supposed to be a relaxing trip ended up in a heated argument with a co-passenger. He took to Reddit for opinions on whether he was wrong for what he did.

The Man Felt Chatty

As the man had been drinking before boarding the flight, he was extra chatty when he got to his seat. He had a female passenger about his age beside him, and they started to talk.

At this point, the man felt a strong buzz. Although he wasn't slurring, he could feel his intoxication. He eventually mentioned to the woman that he was a doctor working in internal medicine at a major hospital.

After some small talk, they did their own thing. While the man often slept on long-haul flights, he chose to enjoy the inflight entertainment and free drinks on this particular flight.

He Wasn't in the Position to Help

While enjoying his movie and beverage of choice, a flight attendant announced on the PA that they needed a doctor. As he had been drinking, the man chose not to volunteer himself like he usually would on flights.

"I was not able to think clearly and probably would have done more harm than good in such a situation. I didn't react to the announcement at all," the man shared. His co-passenger proceeded to tap him, repeating the announcement.

The man shrugged and said somebody else would help, or a medical team on the ground would instruct the flight attendants what to do. His co-passenger insisted he helped, and when he refused, she called him names.

The Man Slammed His Co-Passenger

His seatmate went on to say that if the other passenger died on the flight, it was because he refused to help. At this point, he was fed up.

"I said, 'listen lady, just because I'm a doctor doesn't mean I'm not on call 24/7 to provide medical care on demand,'" the man said. The woman looked disgusted and refused to talk to him for the duration of the flight.

Admittedly, the man never knew what happened to the passenger who needed help. However, since no announcement was made again, he assumed everything went smoothly.

Before exiting the plane, the woman called the man names again. This time, he refused to engage with her and kept his thoughts to himself.

People Commented on the Situation

Given that he was drunk, he knew he was not in the right mind to give medical assistance to anybody needing help. He wasn't in the wrong, but the man wanted outsiders' opinions.

While many users acknowledged the doctor wasn't at fault, they felt it was inappropriate for him to talk to his co-passenger the way he did.

"You did the right thing. Your judgment was that you would do more harm than good, like under the influence of alcohol," someone commented.

"You're the [expletive] for the way you communicated why you weren't volunteering," said one user. "You could have just said it’s not ethical because you’ve consumed too much alcohol," echoed another.

What do you think of the man's situation? Did he handle it the right way, or should he have handled it differently?

In a similarly interesting story, a dad filmed a flight attendant spoon-feeding his five-year-old boy as he watched. People slammed him for his inaction.