Ron,

I attended your airway course in Boston this month. Since I rarely care for critically ill pediatric patients, it was comforting to have just finished that class. The review helped me take care of a three-year-old today with cardiac arrest, post-anoxic encephalopathy and status epilepticus. We did RSI and put him on a versed drip and transferred him to Denver. I thought you might like to know that your course makes a big difference in the care of REAL patients. Thanks.

Dr. Walls,

Last night I was called upstairs on a Code 99 at our local hospital where I work.  The patient was transferred from another hospital to the rehab hospital within our facility.  The patient was a 38 y/o with a brain infarct, had a tracheostomy in and it had become dislodged.  By the time I arrived, her neck and face were blowing up with subcutaneous emphysema extending down to her chest.  She was obese, with buck teeth and a recessed chin. 

I attempted to reposition the trach but it did not work.  I tried to put a tube exchanger through the blood and mucous of the trach site and then insert a 6.0 ET tube over it.  That did not work due to the altered anatomy.  Given the apparent difficult airway, I gave her Ketamine to get an awake look but her jaw was clenched.  I gave Sux and Etomidate and took a chance, was able to visualize the larynx and placed the tube deep at 28 cm to bypass the inflating trach site, then brought the tube back slowly.  The chest x-ray showed the tube above the carina, diffuse perithoracic subcutaneous emphysema, and no pneumothorax.

I attended the airway course 5 years ago and again last month in Las Vegas.  I learned more, was more focused, and more determined the second time.  I presented the case of the ballooning patient with the subcutaneous emphysema (during the panel luncheon).  Your input and the group's input on this case, as well as the course, gave me more courage, more definitive action, and a mindset for multiple approaches to all my airway patients.  It erased my tunnel vision.  

Thanks for moving the standard of care forward for me and my patients and thank you for helping me save this patient's airway and her life. 

Ron,

I recently took the Airway Course in early June. I had my personal worst nightmare patient with angioedema who failed all medical therapy and was having increasing secretions.  DUE TO YOUR COURSE, I was successful at fiberoptically nasally intubating her with an awake intubation approach (topical nasal, nebulized lidocaine and a mildly sedating dose of Versed).  It went very smoothly.  I am so grateful to you and your excellent staff.  

Mike,

I met you in Seattle in June '07, but missed you in Huntington Beach this past February.  The textbook and DVD I was given at the last meeting (The Difficult Airway Course: Anesthesia) have been invaluable.  After watching the DVD, twenty times, of Ian doing an awake intubation on his wife, I was able to emulate his technique today in the OR on a morbidly obese guy with severe COPD.  Since Seattle, I have acquired expertise with the Glidescope, Airtraq, and bougie introducer, purchased Lidocaine ointment, spray, a cricothyrotomy catheter, and induced my hospitals to purchase Devilbiss atomizers and Jackson forceps.  I have also used exchange catheters, and have successfully and confidently intubated scores of patients who would have otherwise scared the daylights out of me. My airway evaluations are now much more systematic and informed.

I will be back for other workshops with your group for the purpose of review.  You and your staff have dramatically changed my career for the better.

Thanks again.

Dear Doctors,

I wanted to write and let you know that shortly after I completed the airway course in Las Vegas I had an opportunity to practice the skills I learned.  A 12 year old was involved in a serious ATV accident and needed a crash airway.  The cognitive and motor skills I practiced in your class directly resulted in a first pass intubation with a fantastic outcome.  Part of the privilege of being a medical educator is that you not only save lives where you are the physician in charge but also in the lives saved where your education of an individual plays a significant role.  The latter I am sure you don't hear about enough and I wanted to write and congratulate you on a life saved in rural Wyoming.

I am going to make your course mandatory for our clinical staff.  Thanks again.

Dr. Walls,
 
I attended your course on difficult airways in Las Vegas last weekend (I was the guy who was your “98th percentile guy” on the code situation involving the Ativan overdose/stroke patient). Just wanted to thank you for the compliment that day, and also to say what a pleasure it was taking this course.  It has changed the way I practice my airway management.  I am now teaching residents a lot of the things you taught in the course, and also recommending it to everyone!  I have intubated 3 people in the ED since the course, and didn't sweat once.  Thank you for a great time.  Your team has a gift for teaching that few people have.  Thanks for everything!