Experiencing some of the best of Juneau under difficult circumstances

Grante Creek Basin. (City and Borough of Juneau photo)

As many readers may know, I recently fell, broke my ankle and had to get helicopter out of Granite Basin.

Because of the location it made for a very tricky landing or more accurately a hovering with one skid on the ground. After dropping off the paramedics the helicopter flew back up on the ridge in order to shut down and wait for when the paramedics had me ready for a pickup. 

In a tremendous amount of pain, I was very relieved when the CCFR paramedics arrived. They first gave me an IV of fentanyl, set at level to keep me cognizant while taking the edge off the severe pain. Then they applied a splint to my ankle. Next came figuring out how to get me down a steep bouldery slope. I got to listen in on their decision-making every step of the way. I was so impressed and reassured by their professionalism. They told me I was lucky to get one of the best helicopter pilots in Southeast. It was only through their confidence did I dare hop onto a hovering helicopter. 

Once onboard and watching the pilot maneuver out of a tight spot, I could tell the paramedics were right about this highly skilled Temsco pilot. It was a short trip to the airport where the CCFR ambulance crew was standing by. They took my vitals and whisked me into Bartlett ER. 

While I got my own examination room and saw the ER doc, the ER started filling up quickly. Soon the time in between getting a procedure done and waiting for the ER doc to review the results began to get longer and longer. Essentially, with a sunny day activating a lot of outdoor activities and having and five cruise ships in, the ER was getting slammed. 

For longer than I wanted to I watched nurses and medical technicians buzz around the ER addressing needs and communicating with each other. The upside of waiting for the ER doc to return, was that I had a very informative visit with the orthopedic surgeon that reviewed my x-rays. I also had time to get a pre-surgery CT scan done. Eventually the ER doc came by to apply a cast for my departure. He got halfway into constructing the cast before he got called out for a new arrival. He returned about 40 minutes later, apologetic and re-focused on finishing my cast.

Although I was in the ER way too long, I did get to see the crew at Bartlett in high-stress action. And most importantly for me, from the ER doc to the x-ray technician, I was comforted by the professionalism and kind attention I encountered throughout the evening. 

We as a community are fortunate to have the highly skilled rescue services of CCFR which is supported by top-of-the-line helicopter pilots. And we’re equally fortunate to have the competent medical services of Bartlett ER. This is something I now know on a deep personal level and am eternally grateful for. 

• Kate Troll, a longtime Alaskan, has more than 25 years of experience in coastal management, fisheries and energy policy and is a former executive director for United Fishermen of Alaska and the Alaska Conservation Voters. She’s been elected to local office twice, written two books and resides in Juneau.