Cardiac arrest is a silent, sudden and indiscriminate killer and you’d think that no one would know this better than a paramedic.
However it took the death of a young football player from his son’s club for this and the importance of early defibrillation to hit home with Ambulance Victoria, Gisborne, Team Manager Andrew White.
In May 2010 19-year-old Stephen Buckman collapsed and died from a cardiac arrest during training at the Rupertswood Football Club. Andrew was off-duty at the club and assisted in the mammoth effort undertaken to try to save Stephen’s life, which included nearly two hours of CPR. In Stephen’s case a defibrillator wasn’t available for 22 minutes. Had one been available within the first five minutes his outcome could have been very different.
Andrew, a paramedic for 20 years said, “I’d been to hundreds of cardiac arrests and you’re not affected by it, you go on to the next job, you don’t appreciate the impact until you’re a part of it”.
Pictured L to R:
Andrew White, Founding Director,
Defib of Your Club For Life!
Stephen Buckman
Sue Buckman, Director, Defib Your Club For Life!