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Lives Saved By AEDs: 78

Cardiac arrest can happen in the blink of an eye. Without immediate treatment, it usually causes death. However, the odds of survival increase significantly when an AED is used on the victim.

Here are some of the lives that have been saved with Rescue 7 AEDs:

70-year-old Jacky Hutchison was shopping with his wife when he had a cardiac arrest at a Canadian Tire store near Lake Shore Boulevard and Leslie Street last week. Hutchison’s heart suddenly stopped beating and he collapsed. A customer nearby immediately started administering CPR while a Canadian Tire employee used the store’s automated external defibrillator (AED), provided by Rescue 7. Hutchison is stable and healthy.

December, 2017 - Toronto, ON

Lloyd Hamel was out shopping for his birthday when he suffered a heart attack. Mary Sever was behind Hamel in line and called for help when he collapsed. Theresa Ross was also shopping and heard the calls for help. She saw that Hamel wasn't breathing. Ross, a nurse at RVH, started CPR, eventually using a Rescue 7 defibrillator to shock him back to life.

February, 2017 - Barrie, ON

Officers with the Castlegar RCMP were approached by individuals looking for assistance with a male that had collapsed while preparing for the local Farmer’s Market. The officers were advised that the 53-year-old male had just been found unconscious in his RV parked at the Castlegar museum. They moved the male from the RV and placed him on the ground outside and began CPR, while they awaited the arrival of BC Ambulance Services.

The officers were equipped and trained in the use of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) and while one officer performed CPR, the second officer set up the AED and attached it to the unconscious man and activated the AED. The officers continued to perform CPR on the man until BCAS paramedics arrived shortly after and took over life saving efforts. The male was transported to the Kelowna hospital, where on Monday Sept 19th it was learned that, as of this time, he was in stable condition.

September, 2016 - Castlegar, BC

A healthy middle-aged female employee of a processing plant arrived at work and began her shift. Within 10 minutes of beginning her work day, she was walking down the hall and collapsed. Her fellow colleagues had all been trained in first aid by Rescue 7, and the facility had installed Rescue 7’s HeartSine SAM500P, with real-time CPR feedback, just a year ago. Training instincts took over, and the well-executed emergency response, with early defibrillation from the AED, is credited for saving her life.

March, 2016 - Victoria, BC

A healthy 62-year-old male collapsed while working out at a fitness facility. Fortunately, the gym had Rescue 7’s HeartSine SAM350P on hand, and their trained staff, along with an off-duty paramedic, grabbed the AED and began CPR. A shock was delivered prior to the arrival of EMS, who took over with CPR. The patient is now resting in hospital and a full recovery is expected.

March, 2015 - Ottawa, ON

A group of staff and members at the North Bay, Ont. YMCA is credited with saving a 69-year-old man who had a cardiac arrest and collapsed after swimming laps in the pool. A lifeguard and paramedic instructor, the aquatic director, a couple of student paramedic and several others staffers pitched in to perform CPR and shock the man using an automated external defibrillator. Paramedics and firefighters took over from the group, arriving shortly after receiving the 911 call. The man was breathing and sitting up in the ambulance by the time it arrived at hospital.

February, 2014 - North Bay, ON

Ayaz Kara was playing squash at Mount Royal University’s recreation centre in Calgary when he suddenly felt dizzy and out of breath. Student Michael Dubnyk was the first to respond to the emergency cardiac arrest, beginning CPR on the 53-year-old. First aid instructor Paul Hunka then raced to the scene to help. As the men continued to compress Kara’s chest, a MRU supervisor grabbed an AED, hooked it up to Kara and shocked him twice. “They’re angels in my eyes, they really are, because they saved me,” he said.

January, 2014 – Calgary, AB

Quick response and an onsite AED are being credited for saving the life of an Ottawa man who went into cardiac arrest while curling in Quebec. A doctor on the ice began CPR while the HeartSine Samaritan PAD 300P defibrillator was retrieved. Two shocks were delivered, keeping the man alive until emergency crews arrived. The man survived and is now recovering at home.

January, 2014- Ottawa, ON

Here’s why every hockey arena in Canada should - and soon will - have defibrillators on premises. A man in Quebec was fortunate not to be another fatality statistic, thanks to an accessible and easy-to-use HeartSine Samaritan PAD 500P defibrillator and the quick reaction of bystanders. Studies have shown that the emergency use of an AED and proper CPR on a cardiac arrest victim can increase the chance of survival by more than 75%

May, 2013 – Quebec

An off-duty firefighter in Newfoundland saved a man’s life at a gentlemen’s league hockey game. The 50-year-old player first experienced chest pains and then collapsed in cardiac arrest. The firefighter immediately took charge, sending someone to call 911 and grabbing the nearby AED. Within two minutes, the firefighter administered the first of five shocks to the fallen man’s chest. The use of that AED and CPR keep the man alive before emergency crews arrived 15 minutes later. The man was rushed to hospital for surgery to repair a 90% blockage in one artery. He has made a full recovery.

March, 2013 - Newfoundland