Malpas man's lifesavers a cut above the rest
A MALPAS man who had a cardiac arrest in his local barber shop in Newport has thanked his wife, the bystanders and ambulance crew who saved his life.
When Adrian Wilkins collapsed while waiting for a haircut, it was his quick-thinking wife Sandra who started the chain of survival.
Sandra delivered chest compressions to her husband on the shop floor while customers retrieved the nearest defibrillator.
Sandra, a former health care support worker on a paediatric unit with 20 years’ NHS service, said: “All was normal that day.
“We’d been out shopping and running a few errands before popping into Levi’s barber shop so Adrian could get haircut.
“I noticed that something wasn’t right and after a brief spasm, I realised he wasn’t breathing.
“My training kicked in and I began giving Adrian CPR immediately.
“Luckily, there were customers in the shop as well as the owner who realised how serious the situation was and came rushing over to help.
“Ethan, the owner of Levi’s, took the phone from me and relayed information to the ambulance call handler while a customer ran to the nearby pharmacy to get a defibrillator.”
Upon hearing what was unfolding, the pharmacist also came to give assistance and took over chest compressions.
Anna Ashford, a Welsh Ambulance Service call handler, guided Sandra, Ethan and the customer through CPR.
Anna, who is based at the Trust’s Clinical Contact Centre in Cwmbran, said: “I remember the call vividly as the initial information suggested Mr Wilkins had suffered as spasm or seizure, but it quickly became apparent that it was far more serious and he wasn’t breathing.
“Once I realised he was in cardiac arrest, I immediately began instructing Sandra, Ethan and the other customer on how to administer CPR.
“After a few moments, Adrian began to respond but it was clear from the information I was receiving from those in the shop that he still wasn’t breathing effectively.
“I made sure they continued with the chest compressions until either a defibrillator or our crew arrived on scene.”
Sandra said: “Fortunately, the ambulance crew arrived on scene very quickly, before we could actually use the defibrillator.
“It was a tremendous relief when the crew arrived and it was only afterwards that things began to sink in because while it was all happening, I didn’t really have time to process it.”
First on scene was paramedic Dave Towers and emergency medical technician Mike Morelli.
Mike said: ”On entering the barber shop, we saw Mr Wilkins on the floor having CPR.
“Dave took over airway management whilst I attached the ambulance defibrillator prior to delivering further CPR.
The team were also supported by ambulance care assistant Dane Parry and Cymru High Acuity Response Unit (CHARU) paramedic Rob Horton.
Rob is one of more than 100 CHARU paramedics pan-Wales responding to the most urgent calls, including cardiac arrests, road traffic collisions, major trauma and maternity emergencies.
Mike said: “Rob and Dane made the preparations to move Mr Wilkins to the ambulance.
“Mr Wilkins was given two shocks at the scene, following which he became more stable and was transferred to the ambulance and taken to hospital.”
Adrian spent three weeks at the Grange University Hospital, where he was fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD).
He said: “I have no recollection whatsoever of the incident and all I remember is waking up afterwards.
“I felt like a rugby ball in the middle of a scrum due to all the people that were surrounding me and taking care of me.
“My deepest gratitude goes out to all who played a part, and I will be forever grateful to everyone that saved my life.”
Adrian, who has three children and four grandchildren was 69 at the time of his cardiac arrest in November and has since gone on to celebrate his 70th birthday with Sandra, to whom he has been married for 32 years.
When someone has a cardiac arrest, they collapse and become unresponsive.
They either stop breathing entirely, or they may take gasping or infrequent breaths for a few minutes, which can be misinterpreted as snoring.
If you see someone having a cardiac arrest, phone 999 immediately and start CPR.
In addition, a defibrillator will deliver a controlled electric shock to try and get the heart beating normally again.
Ambulance call handlers will tell you where your nearest defibrillator is.
The Resuscitation Council UK has produced a step-by-step guide to doing CPR:
How to do CPR | Resuscitation Council UK
All new and existing defibrillators must be registered on the national defibrillator network The Circuit so that 999 call handlers can see their location:
The Circuit - the national defibrillator network
The Welsh Ambulance Service continues to work in partnership with Welsh Government and third sector partners to strive to deliver the Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Plan in Wales.
Throughout February, the Welsh Ambulance Service is running its annual month-long social media campaign ‘Defibruary’ which is designed to educate the public about the importance of bystander CPR and defibrillation.
For more information, please visit:
Defibuary - Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust
Editor’s Notes
For more information, email Communications Officer Jeff.Prescott@wales.nhs.uk or call Jeff on 07811 748363.