A319
Flight Attendant Current
Situational Awareness; Communication Breakdown; Physiological - Other
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Illness / Injury
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Diverted
Procedure; Human Factors
At some point in boarding; passenger and her husband boarded the plane.  I immediately noticed [female passenger's] head was wrapped in surgical bandages and her face was very swollen.  Her face was so swollen; her eyes were slits. On the left side of her face was a lump about the size of an orange.  Out of concern; I greeted [her] and asked where she was sitting; my motivation being to keep an eye on her during the flight.  [Male companion] showed me his wife's ticket; 21E; an exit row seat.  I asked [female passenger] if she knew she was assigned to an exit row seat.  She did not respond and just stared at me with dull; listless eyes.  I thought she might be on some kind of pain medication as a result of her obvious medical condition.  I asked [her] if she was capable of opening an exit window and assisting in the event of an emergency.  She continued to stare blankly at me and not answer my questions.  [Male companion]; speaking for his wife; said 'of course she can!'  He told me that the gate agent assigned us these seats.  Purser witnessed [female passenger's] condition; my asking her emergency exit questions; [her] not responding and her husband responding for her.  When I told [male companion] we would need to relocate them to another economy plus seat; [he] indicated he was unwilling to have their seats changed.  At that point; [the Purser] went to find a CSR to handle the situation.The [passengers] took their seats at the exit row.  Boarding continued and my attention was soon diverted from boarding to a CSR speaking loudly to [the Purser] near me in the First Class galley.  He was challenging her judgement about [female passenger's] condition and he did not want to move the [passengers].  I offered CSR my assessment of [female passenger]; saying I believed she was not qualified or capable of assisting in an evacuation. I told him that she did not respond to my exit row verification questions and that I thought she might be on some kind of medication that would also inhibit her ability to assist. CSR was visibly not calm or controlled.  His voice was loud and he appeared to be taking our request to relocate the [passengers] out of the exit row personally.  [He] snapped back at me 'did you ask her if she was on medication?'  I replied the husband was insisting he and his wife not be moved and because the door was still open; it was not my responsibility to ask any passenger if they are on medication.  [CSR] left the plane saying he was calling his supervisor.  [Purser] went to the cockpit to inform the Captain about the problem.  The Captain supported our concern and put in his request that Customer Service reseat the [passengers]. The Captain was on the jet bridge; talking to the Customer Service supervisor and CSR. Another gate agent reseated the [passengers].  The door was closed and we took off.  Within minutes of wheels up and before the inflight announcements were made; we heard the call chime. I could see the light was near the [particular passengers] so I made my way toward the call light to where they were sitting.  [The female passenger] was unconscious; shaking and being held by her husband.  I went forward and immediately notified [Purser].  We had an emergency room doctor in 2A and he immediately responded.  [Purser] notified the cockpit and served as communicator while I assisted the doctor.  Another doctor and a surgical nurse were across the aisle from the [passengers] and they both assisted the emergency room doctor.  It was determined by the doctors that [the female passenger] had suffered a seizure and possibly a post-op blood clot to the brain or stroke.  The doctors agreed an emergency divert was necessary.  We landed in Airport ZZZ where [the female passenger] was removed by EMT.
During boarding; I noticed a couple seated in the exit row at 21 E and F. The woman had a heavily bandaged head and her eyes did not seem to focus completely (as though she was on medication). They both had carry-on items and 2 large bed pillows at their feet; blocking access to the window exit. When I attempted to explain that the items had to be stowed; the man interrupted me and said; 'She can do it' apparently referring to her ability to open the window exit in an emergency. My flying partner indicated that they were being moved to other seats. I was very surprised to see that they had been seated in the emergency exit row to begin with and said the same to our purser; who had already brought the issue up with the CSR working the flight. As it turned out; the woman had a medical event during the flight and the plane was diverted to Airport ZZZ; where she was removed from the flight and taken to the hospital.
Two flight attendants requested that passengers be relocated from exit row seating due to concern over the female passengers state of health. Customer Service was resistant but eventually reseated the passengers. Shortly after takeoff; the female passenger was reported to have become unconscious. A medical diversion took place where the passenger was removed from the flight.