Kent cardiac arrest survivor reunites with 999 heroes

A young man from Dover whose heart stopped for six minutes after being rushed to hospital has been reunited with the SECAmb colleagues who played a part in saving his life.

Aydan Adams, now 23, was invited to the Trust’s Ashford Make Ready Centre recently – more than a year after he was found unresponsive at his grandmother’s house and taken to hospital, where he later suffered a cardiac arrest.

On 3 November 2023, Aydan, then just 21, was at his grandmother’s home when his mother found him drowsy and unresponsive. She immediately called 999 and was connected to Senior Emergency Medical Advisor Charlotte Davis, who triaged the call and categorised it as a Category 2 emergency. Paramedic crew Bob and Martin were dispatched and arrived at the home within six minutes.

The crew administered medication before taking Aydan to the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford. Shortly after arriving, Aydan’s condition took a dramatic turn, as his heart stopped for six minutes having gone into cardiac arrest.

Hospital teams worked to resuscitate him, getting hands on chest immediately and achieving a return of spontaneous circulation before transferring him to St Thomas’ Hospital in London. He spent three weeks in a coma in intensive care, beginning a long road to recovery.

Now, 16 months later, Aydan was able to thank some of those who helped save his life. His reunion at Ashford Make Ready Centre brought together Paramedic Bob Campbell and Senior Emergency Medical Advisor Charlotte Davis, as well as Aydan’s family.