After her heart stopped beating, a grandmother is alive today because her husband immediately began CPR; a decision that kept her alive long enough for ambulance colleagues to arrive.
Thanks to this colossal team effort, Anne, aged 67 is now looking forward to seeing her daughter walk down the aisle this August and watch her eight grandchildren grow up.
Anne was at home with her husband of 15 years, Martin, on 27 October 2025 when she began to feel generally unwell during the early hours of the morning. She became clammy and complained of chest pain, symptoms that immediately concerned Martin, who knew this was out of character for his wife.
Thankfully, Martin had completed a first aid course through his work just two months prior and trusting his instincts, he dialled 999 at 04:16 with Anne now collapsed and not breathing.
Emergency Medical Advisor, Ella-May instructed Martin to begin chest compressions immediately, while Resource Dispatcher, Amber, coordinated a large emergency response to the couple’s home in Sittingbourne, Kent.
Within seven minutes, Paramedic Matthew and Emergency Care Support Worker, Sarah were first on scene, followed shortly by Emergency Care Support Worker, Anna, Paramedic, Daniel and Student Paramedic, Mollie. They were joined soon after by Emergency Care Support Worker, Glenn, Paramedic, Lucy and Associate Ambulance Practitioner, Jessica.
The team quickly confirmed Anne was in cardiac arrest and worked together to deliver life-saving interventions, including defibrillation to Anne’s heart. Shortly after 05:00, the team achieved a sustainable return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) to Anne’s heart.
Critical Care Paramedic, Duncan and Student Critical Care Paramedic, Joshua also attended and administered advanced sedation once the team had achieved a ROSC.
Anne was taken to Medway Maritime Hospital before being transferred to William Harvey Hospital, where she spent several days and had a stent fitted to widen a blocked artery. Just three days later, she was discharged home to continue her recovery with Martin.
Ten weeks after her cardiac arrest, Anne and Martin visited Medway Make Ready Centre to reunite with the 11 colleagues who played a role, alongside Martin, in saving her life. The couple were in high spirits as they thanked the team in person and reflected on just how close they came to losing everything.
With fewer than one in 10 people surviving an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, Martin’s actions enabled blood to continue circulating around Anne’s heart long enough for ambulance colleagues to arrive, ultimately saving her live.
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Ella-May said “Martin was incredibly calm and focused during what was an extremely distressing situation. He listened carefully, followed every instruction I gave him and started CPR straight away. His confidence and willingness to act made a huge difference in keeping Anne alive until our crews arrived at their home.”
Paramedic Lucy highlighted how critical Martin’s actions were in giving Anne the best possible chance of survival. Lucy said “It was absolutely vital that Martin started CPR before we arrived. That early intervention started the chain of survival and bought Anne precious time. The stars truly aligned and without Martin it could have been a very different outcome.”
Anne said “I don’t remember anything from that morning but I know one thing for certain that I wouldn’t be here today without every single person who helped me. Because of them, I’ll get to see my daughter walk down the aisle and spend more time with my grandchildren. That means everything to me.”
Martin added “Meeting everyone who helped save Anne’s life has been incredibly eye-opening for us. I can never thank them enough for giving us our future back.”