AED Saves Life In Killarney
Sudden cardiac arrest can strike anyone at anytime and is one of Ireland’s biggest killers.
So the 48 year old father of two who entered Life Pharmacy, College Square to pick up some medicine for indigestion must be counting his lucky stars that the staff and so many townspeople came to his aid and knew exactly what to do when he suffered a cardiac arrest on August 3rd.
It was clear that something wasn’t quite right when the tourist came in and complained about a pain in his chest. Despite him being young and fit, his colour looked off and he was holding his stomach as he paced the floor.
A concerned staff member rang South Doc, an out of hours Doctor service, and while they were speaking the victim collapsed, lifeless on to the floor.
While some staff had training, others didn’t but they all came to together to call an Ambulance, start chest compressions and fetch the closest defibrillator.
In seconds there was a lifesaving Automated External Defibrillator (AED) at hand along with a nurse who happened to be in the shop and two trained first responders – one member of staff who was called for from across the street and the other a passerby who saw the commotion and offered help.
MICHAEL LINEHAN HEARTSAFE CHARITY
The closest AED was a stone’s throw away at Dan Linehan’s Bar, College Street. One of a 16 strong network of public access defibrillators in Killarney Town, funded mostly by the Michael Linehan Heartsafe Charity. This network of AED’s is the biggest in the country.
Back at the scene, the responders acted fast to attach the AED and administer one shock just as the Killarney Cardiac Response Unit turned up and took control of the situation.
KILLARNEY CARDIAC RESPONSE UNIT
KCRU is a voluntary unit of approximately 40 local people from all sectors of society, who are highly trained and skilled to respond to 999 and 112 emergency cardiac situations. Responders are activated once an emergency cardiac call is made to the Ambulance. If an Ambulance isn’t close by it will be the KCRU who get to the scene first and in doing so increase the victim’s chance of survival dramatically.
The victim could not have been in better hands that day. He was kept alive with CPR and a total of two life saving shocks before the Ambulance arrived. To everyone’s joy he regained consciousness, opened his eyes and was even talking soon after.
Alive but not out of the woods, he was taken by Air Ambulance to Cork Hospital while his relieved but traumatised family followed in a taxi. Word got back to the Life Pharmacy team that he had survived the weekend and was still in hospital recovering on the Monday.
KILLARNEY – A HEARTSAFE COMMUNITY
Thanks to the combination of a lightening fast reaction from the amazing team in the aptly named Life Pharmacy, the plethora of Michael Linehan Heartsafe AED’s dotted around town and the tireless life saving services of the KCRU, it was true for this 48 year old Dad that being in Killarney saved his life that day.
THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY INVOLVED IN SAVING THIS MAN’S LIFE.
