United Hatzalah: What I do before going to sleep

Recently, I was preparing for bed when I received a call about a man with breathing difficulties. Shaking off my weariness, I dashed out of the house, jumped on my Ambucycle and raced to the scene, arriving in less than 3 minutes! I found a panicked family beside their 65 year-old father who was sitting on his salon chair breathing very laboriously. Quickly, I administered high-flow oxygen and took vital signs. I calmed down the man and his family, assuring them that he would be well taken care off. Although the oxygen had helped to ease the man’s breathing, he did not look well and it was clear that he needed to reach a hospital ASAP.

Me and two other United Hatzalah medics assisted the ambulance crew to carry the rather large man down 3 flights of stairs. On the way down the man lost consciousness and just as they put him in the ambulance his heart stopped beating. The team immediately intubated for breathing assistance and launched into CPR. Due to the narrow confines of the ambulance, the crew took turns inside the vehicle, administering the intense heart compressions. The family looked on in shock and astonishment at the sudden course of events, and the life and death struggle unfolding before their eyes.

After just 5 minutes of CPR, the man’s pulse returned and he was immediately whisked away to the hospital. The family and caring medics breathed a sigh of relief and hoped for the best. I was thrilled to hear from the local grapevine that this gentleman was just released from the hospital…

Check out this video about my Ambucyle.