DR. THOMAS KOSASA DOESN’T
LEAVE MUCH TO CHANCE. In
college he planned to go to medical
school, but still earned his bachelor’s
degree in architecture from Dartmouth
College as a backup. But that’s not all
he had been studying. Between college
courses, he was also training to be
a pilot.
“I started flying while at Dartmouth as
a freshman,” Dr. Kosasa said. “I had
my commercial license by the time
I graduated.”
During medical school at Dartmouth
and then later at McGill University, Dr.
Kosasa attended classes during the day
and flew cargo planes at night. On his
way to eventually more than 5,000 hours
in the air, he would also earn his airline
transport pilot license. His experience
was valuable when he joined the critical
care transport team at Kapi‘olani
Medical Center for Women & Children.
As a pilot and physician, he helped
pioneer a program that provided
flights for expectant mothers with
high-risk pregnancies.
“When I started flying for the air ambu-
lance organization they would deliver
the babies on the neighbor islands, fly
the Kapi‘olani transport team over and
then pick up a small baby in an incuba-
tor,” Dr. Kosasa said. “But then I thought
it would be better to pick up the mom
and then deliver at Kapi‘olani. There was
pushback because they [doctors at both
hospitals] would say ‘Whose patient is it
between here and Honolulu?’ Since I
was on every flight, I’d sign off and say
the patient was my responsibility.”
Fittingly, he earned the nickname
“Stork” for his flying doctor days.
That moniker suits his entire career.
In April 2018, Dr. Kosasa delivered
his 10,000 th baby and is still
going strong.
“I was keeping count, but I was not
going to tell anybody,” Dr. Kosasa
said. “It’s fulfilling because every
baby is special. Sometimes things
happen—patients bleed heavily or
the baby has a drop in heartbeat—
and then you have to act pretty quickly.
But it's a nice feeling to be able to
bring someone into life.”
One of the most notable deliveries
he was involved in was the arrival of
Hawai‘i’s first test-tube baby, Jacquelyn
Low in 1985. Dr. Kosasa was part of a
team of doctors with the Pacific In Vitro
Fertilization Institute at Kapi‘olani who
helped Jacquelyn’s mom, Janice, and
father, James, become new parents.
“Dr. Kosasa made me feel like I didn’t
have anything to worry about,”
Janice said.
Doctors were concerned about a few
things. Complications from an unrelated
surgery had kept Janice from conceiving
for six years. After the in vitro procedure,
which was still relatively new to the
medical community at the time, doctors
Above: Dr. Kosasa during his piloting days during
a stop in Moloka‘i. Below: Dr. Kosasa with his racing
car named Hawaiian Punch and the trophies he
won driving the Corvette.
kept a close eye on her progress. Then,
one day the expectant mother began
to bleed.
“I went to the emergency room and I
remember everyone scattering around,”
she said. “One of the attending physi-
cians there said ‘No one is to touch her.
Dr. Kosasa is coming right now.”
Fortunately, Janice was fine and months
later delivered her healthy baby girl.
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 8)
INSPIRE
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