Every holiday season, millions of Americans hop on a plane to visit friends and family. Most people are anxious about flight delays and cancellations, but as an emergency room physician, there’s one announcement I dread the most: “Is there a doctor on board?” My reluctance isn’t due to any potential inconvenience or legal liability, but rather the fear of facing a sick passenger without the basic equipment or medications needed to help them.

In-flight medical emergencies are rare but happen more often than you might think. In contrast to a prior study that estimated they happen on approximately 1 per 604 flights, recently published analysis of data collected from 84 airlines found that medical emergencies were reported in 1 out of every 212 flights. For context, the the Federal Aviation Administration handles about 44,000 flights daily. That works out to roughly 70 to 200 medical emergencies a day over U.S. skies.

Here’s how those in-flight emergencies can play out: Flight attendants, who are trained in CPR and first aid skills, are the first to respond to an unwell passenger. They might radio a ground team that includes an on-call physician, who can guide treatment and advise whether the flight should be diverted. If a patient’s condition is more serious, crew members have discretion to........

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