I am glad to hear the Mpls-St. Paul Int'l Airport is looking at opening a wellness center, wich would offer hair and nail care and masssages, as well as a medical clinic for treating basic illnesses.

Last week I had a medical emergency while I was at the Seattle airport and I could find no one to help me, short of calling 911.

Earlier that morning, I had used travel size contact solution, which I hadn't used for quite a while. I think it was too old, because the solution felt a little thick when I poured it out. Unfortunately, I dismissed that and used it anyway. Well by the end of my flight, my eyes were all cloudy, making it very difficult to see. After unboarding in Seattle, I took my contacts out, but my eyes were still bad. And now I was wearing glasses that was several prescriptions old, so I could barely see at all.

I was supposed to take the shuttle up to Vancouver, BC, but didn't want to board until I knew what was wrong. At the very least, I needed to flush my eyes out with water. Well, the bathroom water was unusable because it had a preset temperature, which would have scalded my eyes. So I went in search of a first aid station. I asked a handful of airport workers where the station was and no one knew. Finally, after talking to a long-time worker, we concluded there wasn't one.

Here I was trucking around three bags of luggage, barely able to even see, as I walked in vain around the airport. I was feeling very sorry for myself, until I saw a man with an articifical leg.

I was quite worried, though, that I might have a serious eye infection. I began to think about what it'd be like to lose my sight as I went searching for water. The bottled water sold at the airport's convience stores was too cold. Finally I found a store employee who poured me a glass of water from her tap.

Back in a family-style bathroom, which thankfully I had all to myself, I hanged my head over the sink and doushed my eyes with water. It was hard trying to do this by myself, because I didn't have two free hands to keep my eyes open.

Fortunately, by the time I reached the Vancouver area, my eyes were almost back to normal.

I can imagine there being a lot of situations at the airport where someone is stuck there for a while and could really use some medical attention, but not require an ambulance and paramedics. So I hope the Mpls aiport does indeed get a little clinic. At the very least, all airports should have some sort of first aid station or have employees who are first responders and could help in a medical situation.