Cardiac Emergencies, Are You Prepared?

By Kerri Busteed

Nurses and doctors are forced to know how to take care of a cardiac emergency, but what about you? I have two friends’ stories I would like to share with you briefly. Both of these two gals are medical professionals with very different outcomes. How do you want your friend or loved one to end up?

A few years back I had a wonderful colleague who was an emergency room nurse. She would soon turn 40 and was actually excited about it. She had a known problem of going into an unusual heart rhythm, but felt it was being cared for with medications. One night she felt a strange sensation in her chest, called out to her husband for help and dropped to the floor. Her husband was not trained in CPR and didn’t call 911 quickly enough. No AED or CPR for several minutes; precious time without oxygen to her brain. Against all odds, she survived and is talking and living today. She lives, however, with a brain injury in a long term care facility never to practice nursing again.

A year or two later I had a friend who was in her last year of med school. Her and her husband would soon be doctors and starting to work side by side in an internal medicine practice. One sunny day she chose to go for a run before starting her shift. She turned on her I-pod and started running. While out she collapsed on the street. A woman looking out the window called 911 and ran to her side. Knowing CPR she quickly started the steps of breaths and rescue breathing for the young doctor. Minutes later a police officer arrived with an AED in his trunk. Together the two hooked up the AED and shocked the young doctor. When the ambulance arrived they hooked up the doctor to the heart monitor to find she was no longer in a lethal heart rhythm and they could focus on getting her to the hospital for further treatment. Today the two doctors work side by side and play with their six month old son in their free time.

Learning CPR and ensuring that your business, church, school or emergency vehicles are equipped with a functioning AED are key to a good outcome. Neither of these two gals were older than 40. Both of them were well trained to care for other peoples emergencies, but only one had the emergent care that she needed. I encourage you to contact your local American Red Cross or American Heart Association to find a class near you and help to make sure your area is well equipped with an AED.

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