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Anatomy of a Life Saved at School
Archive for March, 2009
We will be reporting on lives saved around the world since our first documented life saved here in Singapore.
The 44-year-old man was training in the weight room on March 5 when he collapsed to the floor.
A YMCA lifeguard and an off-duty paramedic with Muskoka Emergency Medical Services rushed to his side, calling 911 and starting CPR.
A County of Simcoe Public Access Defibrillator was then successfully utilized to shock the man’s heart which had stopped beating.
The patient regained a heartbeat and was conscious and breathing on his own when paramedics arrived two minutes later.
He was transported to Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital and later transferred to Southlake Regional Health Centre in Newmarket for emergency cardiac surgery.
The placement of the AED at the YMCA in Orillia was directed by the County of Simcoe Paramedic Services and made possible by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario’s Heart&Stroke Restart a Heart, Restart a Life Campaign and Chase McEachern Tribute Fund and a generous donation from Scotiabank.
“Our son Chase had a dream of seeing more defibrillators available in more public places to save more lives,” his father, John McEachern said. “Knowing there have been two lives saved in our home community is truly an honour to the legacy of Chase’s dream.”
We will be reporting on lives saved around the world since our first documented life saved here in Singapore.
Mike Toupin the Saviour
Sweeney had just finished unloading his haul at Forest Protection Ltd., located on the former CFB Chatham, and was about to drive away when a blood clot went straight to his heart and he went unconscious.
His truck took off down the parking lot out of control, passing other trucks, flew over a ditch, through a fence and kept moving toward the airfield and a number of parked planes.
Toupin jumped onto to the transport as it drove past him and managed to open the cab door and hit the emergency brake.
“When I saw the truck coming, I knew it wasn’t going to stop for anything,” he said. “I ran along side it and used the grab bar to hold on.”
Once the semi was stopped, he and some other nearby truckers elevated Sweeney’s feet and began CPR.
The ambulance arrived on scene to attend to Sweeney.
All of Toupin’s maneuvering may have been in vain if it weren’t for defibrillator the EMT used to resuscitate Sweeney.
Sweeney doesn’t really remember anything of what happened that day. He said he’s just grateful to Toupin.
“I was in the right place at the right time,” he said. “I was on my way to Baie Sainte-Anne. If it had been ten minutes later I would have been on the highway — and then where would I be?”
“Rick’s doing fine and that’s good enough for me,” said Toupin. “If you asked someone who knows me they would tell you I can be crazy. I’ve done some stupid things… but I would like to think someone would have done the same thing for me.”
“I don’t know how much those machines cost, but they are worth their weight in gold,” said Sweeney. “There should be one on every corner.”
We will be reporting on lives saved around the world since our first documented life saved here in Singapore.
Veilleux was the first responder to arrive there shortly after the 8:30 a.m. He found 76-year-old Armand Caron sitting in a chair, slouched over, and without a pulse. Caron’s wife, Beverly, said her husband had earlier broken his hip and had recently arrived back home from rehabilitation.
A minute or so later, firefighters arrived. Veilleux began performing cardiopulmonary re-suscitation on Caron. The responders then used a defibrillator to send jolts of electricity into Caron in the hopes of reviving his heart.
It worked.
“I’ve (used a defibrillator) before but it was the first time for me anyone’s ever come back,” Veilleux said. “It was an amazing feeling.”
A Delta Ambulance crew arrived and took Caron to the cardiac care unit at MaineGeneral’s Thayer Campus, closing out the incident at 9:17 a.m.
“The four of them worked in concert as a team,” Fire Chief David P. LaFountain said. “It’s not an above-and-beyond kind of award; it’s just the councilors are recognizing a good story out there that these guys, police and fire, are doing a good job working together and providing an excellent service for the town.”
“I’m just happy he’s alive,” Veilleux said.
We will be reporting on lives saved around the world since our first documented life saved here in Singapore.
Hermione Welch receives her award from Ron Coatsworth with leisure centre manager Nick Neale, right
The team swung into action when the 67-year-old man from Beaminster collapsed with heart failure while using an exercise bicycle in January.
After supervisor Luke Hayter, 19, and fitness instructor Mike Pebworth gave initial help, Ms Welch, with the aid of a nurse who happened to be exercising in the gym, began the desperate attempt to resuscitate him.
Hermione, 26, said: “The training just kicked in and I really didn’t think there was any chance of saving him.”
“The first shock from the defibrillator didn’t do anything and I thought ‘oh no’ but on the second I was thinking ‘please please’ and when it shocked it read start cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) which it wouldn’t have done if the heart hadn’t started.”
Eventually the man began breathing again and was flown for treatment at Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester.
The man’s wife said: “I will be eternally grateful to the staff for what they did. I would like to express my sincere thanks to all those involved in his resuscitation, and the subsequent care and kindness shown to me.”
She added: “My husband is now home and appears to be doing well. The outcome could have been so different.”
