Contact: Levi Read
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ALAMEDA, Calif. -- A Cedar Rapids native and 2004 graduate of Jefferson High School was awarded a Letter of Commendation March 1, 2011 for his heroic actions in administering medical assistance to a passenger on a commercial flight July 10, 2010.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Wesley Sedlacek, a boatswain's mate at Coast Guard Station Bodega Bay, Calif. and a Nationally Registered Emergency Medical Technician, was onboard a cross-country flight from Miami to San Francisco when a fellow passenger took ill and began cramping, vomiting and shaking. Sedlaceck responded to a flight attendant's call for assistance to a medical emergency. He took control of the situation by interviewing the flight crew and surrounding passengers.
Sedlacek combined the new information with his own observations of the patient's physical presentation and charted the best available course of action in the current environment. Sedlacek accessed in-flight medical supplies and administered oxygen through a non-breather mask. During the remainder of the flight he continued to monitor the passenger's vital signs and other symptoms. He exuded confidence and remained calm while he provided comfort to the ill passenger, flight crew and other passengers for more than 90 minutes of the flight. Upon the aircraft's touchdown at San Francisco, Sedlacek facilitated an efficient relief with medical responders who arrived to transport the passenger.
"I never expected an award, but I am very thankful for it," said Sedlacek. "This flight alone solidified my desire to continue learning about advanced medical care and taught me anything can happen no matter where you are, so I always need to be semper paratus - always ready."
Vice Adm. Manson K. Brown, Pacific Area Commander presented the Letter of Commendation to Sedlaceck at Station Bodega Bay on March 1. The award was signed for the Commandant by Capt. Cynthia Stowe, Sector San Francisco commander.
The Commandant's Letter of Commendation was originally created to enable the Secretary of the Treasury or the Commandant to address a Letter of Commendation to any individual in the Coast Guard for "meritorious service resulting in unusual and outstanding achievement rendered while the Coast Guard is serving under Treasury Department jurisdiction." The current ribbon is awarded to any member of the Armed Forces of the United States, serving in any capacity with the Coast Guard, for an act or service resulting in unusual or outstanding achievement. For more information on the Commandant's Letter of Commendation, click on this link.
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