Thanks to the life-saving actions of two bystanders and SECAmb clinicians, cardiac arrest survivor, Michael Wilde, got to celebrate his 81st birthday and 52 years of marriage.
Michael and his wife, Ruth, recently visited our Tangmere Make Ready Centre, where they met with some of his lifesavers including Paramedics Steve Leggatt and Chelsey Lallem-Haylock, Trainee Associate Ambulance Practitioner (TAAP) Ellie Rendall, Clinical Education Practitioner, Richard Crabb, and Associate Ambulance Practitioner (AAP) George Pewsey as well as one of the members of the public who gave Michael CPR, Kirstee, and her partner Allen.
On 28 December 2024, Michael returned to the UK from his home in Spain to visit his family in Sussex for Christmas, but his journey took an unexpected turn.
Moments after getting off a train in Bognor Regis, Michael collapsed and stopped breathing. A driver, George, spotted Michael and called 999 and began CPR. Moments later he was joined by Kirstee, who was driving by and stopped to help administer vital chest compressions prior to the ambulance crews’ arrival.
Paramedic, Steve Leggatt said: “Without the quick actions of George and Kirstee, the outcome for Michael could have been very different. The minutes after a cardiac arrest are crucial and their quick-thinking gave him the best chance of survival.”
The teams arrived shortly after and administered nine life-saving shocks with a defibrillator before taking Michael to St Richard’s Hospital.
Recovery has been a long road for Michael having spent two months in hospital and a further two months in the neuro rehab unit having suffered hypoxic brain damage.
However, since being discharged from hospital, Michael has enjoyed celebrating his 81st birthday, spending time with his family and is now looking forward to returning to Spain with Ruth.
Michael said: “A huge thank you to everyone for what they did that day. When something like this happens, it gives you a new perspective and I’m very grateful to still be here. I can’t thank everyone enough for the care I have received on that day and in my recovery. I’m now very much looking forward to returning to a warmer climate in Spain.”
Ruth added: “Instead of Michael arriving home that evening, I had two police officers on the doorstep telling me Michael had suffered a heart attack, he was on his way to hospital and they would take me there immediately. They could tell me no more and in that moment my world seemed to descend into a dark turmoil filled with the coldest dread.
“I can’t thank everyone enough for what they did, and it’s been a true privilege to meet some of the people that saved Michael.”
Early intervention in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests can make all the difference to someone’s chance of survival. Learning CPR can be done in as little as 15 minutes with free, online tools from the British Heart Foundation here.