Call of the Month - September - 2010
In every Hatzolah newsletter, we share one of our most memorable call-outs of the last month stories that teach us about keeping our families and ourselves safe from harm.
A woman finds her employee unconscious. She immediately calls Hatzolah and begins CPR. Hatzolah arrives on the scene within minutes. By the time Hatzolah responders tend to the woman, she has regained consciousness and is breathing, thanks to the CPR initiated by her employer. Responders move the woman onto the floor. As they do this, she stops breathing again and her heart stops.
Hatzolah responders resume CPR and administer oxygen. A minute passes and she begins to breathe.
Hatzolah stabilises the woman and put her on a drip. Again, she goes into cardiac arrest and stops breathing. Responders examine her and detect no heartbeat. They resume CPR and once again she awakens, but her breathing is shallow. Now her heart rate is much too fast and Hatzolah responders use a defibrillator to perform cardioversion on the patient, shocking the heart in order to slow it down. She stabilises slightly for about another minute, and then goes into cardiac arrest for a fourth time.
Responders resume CPR for another three to four minutes and use advanced airway manoeuvres to create a pathway to her lungs (this manoeuvre includes inserting a tube down the patient's throat and using a bag to breathe for her). Four minutes later, responders detect the woman's pulse. They move her to a stretcher and into the ambulance. Responders were on scene for approximately 40 minutes in total. En route to hospital, they stabilise her blood pressure and hand her over to hospital staff. She was admitted to ICU for a week, and then transferred to a general ward for another week to recover fully. Three weeks after the incident, she was discharged and today - she is back at work and fully functional.
This woman is alive today for one reason: Her employer knew CPR and performed it the moment she found the patient unconscious. Had she not done this, it would probably have been too late by the time Hatzolah arrived. We encourage all community members to do a basic CPR course.
Types of Calls
| Description | Tally |
|---|
| Unwell | 27 |
| Transport | 25 |
| Fall | 21 |
| Collapse | 16 |
| Chest Pain - Medical | 14 |
| Motor Vehicle Accident | 11 |
| Respiratory Distress | 11 |
| Overdose | 10 |
| Seizures | 10 |
| Nausea & Vomiting | 8 |
| Stroke | 7 |
| Full Resuscitation / CPR | 7 |
| Unconscious | 6 |
| Pedestrian Vehicle Accident | 5 |
| Abdominal Pain | 4 |
| Bleeding | 4 |
| Anaphylaxis | 2 |
| Anxiety Attack | 2 |
| Fire | 2 |
| Fire | 2 |
| Fracture | 2 |
| Maternity | 2 |
| Motor Bike Accident | 2 |
| Neck of Femur | 2 |
| Alcohol Overdose | 1 |
| Assault | 1 |
| Attempted Suicide / Suicide | 1 |
| Back Pain | 1 |
| Bicycle Accident | 1 |
| Epistaxis | 1 |
| Gun Shot Wound | 1 |
| Head Injury | 1 |
| Hypertension | 1 |
| Hypolycemia | 1 |
| Hypotension | 1 |
| Psychiatric | 1 |