Dubai: The world’s heaviest woman, Eman Abdul Atti, is set to arrive at the Abu Dhabi airport from Mumbai on Thursday, hospital sources confirmed to Gulf News.
The patient will be medically evacuated in a unique bed-to-bed transfer aboard an EgyptAir special Airbus 300 Mumbai–Abu Dhabi flight by the late afternoon on Thursday.
Eman Abdul Atti and sister Shaima Selim |
Abdul Atti, who was classified as the world’s heaviest woman, was medically evacuated in a special cargo plane from Alexandria, Egypt, in February to undergo bariatric surgery at the Saifee Hospital in Mumbai. She is said to have weighed 500kg at the time and now weighs 176kg.
However, following a disagreement between Abdul Atti’s family and the surgeon attending to her, Dr Maffazal Lakdawala, her sister Shaima Selim approached the Burjeel Hospital in Abu Dhabi for help and the latter agreed to take on the responsibility of nursing her back to health.
Dr Shamsheer Vayalil, chairman and founder of Burjeel Hospital, flew to Mumbai with his team of ICU intensivists, specialists and paramedics and is currently on ground coordinating the logistics of evacuation.
The UAE government issued long-term single-entry ‘courtesy visas’ to Abdul Atti and sister Shaima Selim in the last week of April.
The visa is valid for 90 days.
Dr Vayalil told Gulf News: “I would like to express my gratitude to the UAE government which lost no time in issuing long-term courtesy visas to facilitate the transfer of the patient.”
Dr Shajir Gaffar, CEO of Burjeel Hospital, Dubai and Northern Emirates, who is accompanying the team, told Gulf News: “In Abdul Atti’s case, we will employ a multidisciplinary and integrated approach [for her treatment] that will go far beyond surgery for weight loss. We will extend complete physical and psychological rehabilitation to her.”
Sanet Mayer, director of Burjeel’s Medevac unit that is in charge of the medical evacuation, had earlier told Gulf News that a joint task force of Burjeel Hospital India and Abu Dhabi was working on the ground logistics of transfer of the patient.
“She will be transported on a special bed in a special ambulance to the airport and hoisted to the aircraft door with a pneumatic hoisting equipment. In-flight patient care will be provided by a team of intensivists and paramedics.
"We will carry all ICU medicines and emergency equipment on board the flight such as defibrillator, ventilator, oxygen cylinder and medication to handle any kind of medical emergency on board.”
Abdul Atti, 36, will continue her special liquid diet that is fed to her via a tube while on board the flight.
Meanwhile, Shaima Selim told Gulf News from Mumbai: “Eman and I are absolutely thrilled with the prospect of travelling to Abu Dhabi soon. I cannot thank Dr Vayalil enough for thinking of us as his extended family and reaching out to us. I now feel there is hope that Eman will recover and stand on her feet soon.”
