A man is safe and recovering at home after Global Rescue medically evacuated him from a remote camp in Botswana to a hospital where he underwent complex heart surgery that saved his life.

The man and his wife were on safari in the Tuli Block game reserves in Botswana when he began coughing severely. He visited a local clinic where he was diagnosed with bronchitis, his coughing worsened and he became short of breath. His safari guide called Global Rescue for help.

Global Rescue’s medical staff obtained the member’s test results, suggested he be evaluated for congestive heart failure after reviewing his medical history, and recommended a medical evacuation from the camp. Global Rescue immediately launched a medically equipped aircraft to evacuate the member, who was transported from a remote landing strip to Johannesburg, the location of the best cardiology unit on the continent. There, he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, and the local surgeons and Global Rescue physicians agreed he would require immediate bypass surgery. Global Rescue deployed a medical team to his bedside to oversee and coordinate his treatment.

After a lengthy and complicated procedure and post-operative rehabilitation that saved his life, the man and his wife were transported home to Texas.