Saved by love and CPR
Posted February 14, 2013 6:34 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – It’s a special Valentine’s Day for three couples across the province.
Three people are being recognized by paramedics with Vital Link awards for saving their partner’s life using CPR.
Randy Hansen with BC Ambulance says Port Moody couple Laurie and Robert Landie were spending a quiet morning at home when Robert collapsed. “Laurie called 9-1-1 and she was instructed by one of our call takers how to do CPR which she performed on her husband, she continued CPR until the paramedics and first responders arrived,” says Hansen.
“Even though I didn’t have CPR training, Sharon the dispatcher kept me reasonably calm and I was able to follow her instructions,” says Laurie. “The paramedics and dispatchers are obviously a dedicated, very determined team. They were a great help to both my husband and I.”
In December, Rick Frey had just walked into his Campbell River home after finishing some yard work when a friend told him that his wife had just collapsed. Having taken a first aid course for his job as a professional fisherman, Rick started CPR.
“I don’t know how I did it, but I just did what needed to be done. I just knew I couldn’t lose her,” says Rick. “I should probably do another course, as it has been years since I took one.”
In Surrey, Gerry McArthur collapsed after doing some gardening in his backyard. His wife Martha began performing CPR, which she had learned through her work with the RCMP.
Although each couple is located in different parts of the province, they share the common experience of being at home when their spouses collapsed due to sudden cardiac arrest.
Hansen says it was a very emotional ceremony and these couples have been given the ultimate gift.
“Laurie, Martha and Rick are proof that taking the time to learn CPR can save lives,” says Minister of Health Margaret MacDiarmid. “Congratulations to the three of you. Thanks to your quick thinking actions you will be able to celebrate a very special Valentine’s Day with your loved ones.”
BCAS presents the Vital Link Award to recognize members of the public who save a life and to raise awareness of the importance of CPR. A cardiac arrest victim is four times more likely to survive if they receive CPR from a bystander. However, in approximately 85 per cent of all cardiac arrest cases, this basic procedure is not performed.
