A Save at the Sports Complex
It was a sunny March day in Balwyn North, Victoria, and 350 students and staff were gathered for a School Swimming Carnival at the Boroondara Sports Complex. In the middle of a lap down the pool, a 13-year-old student from Trinity Grammar School experienced sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).
Fortunately, the attending lifeguard noticed something was wrong and responded immediately, diving into the water within ten seconds of the student becoming unresponsive. Matthew Williams, the school nurse, who had seen hundreds of SCAs in the hospital but never one in public, was on the other side of the pool in the treatment room when he heard a commotion.
It was my first public CPR, and it was on a boy who was the same age as my son.”
— Matthew Williams, school nurse
“I saw the lifeguard in the water holding [the student] and he was purple,” Williams says. “So I took off to help right away.”
Williams and one of the lifeguards grabbed the nearby ZOLL automated external defibrillator (AED) and an oxygen bottle. Once the student was out of the pool, Williams immediately began performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
“It was my first public CPR,” Williams recalls thinking, “and it was on a boy who was the same age as my son.”
Rescuers prepared the AED and were just placing the pads on the boy when he started to regain consciousness and breathe on his own. They removed the pads and rolled him onto his side, but he became unresponsive again.
Focusing on remaining calm, the rescuers quickly replaced the AED pads and the device recommended a shock. After the shock was administered, they continued performing CPR until he again regained consciousness. Paramedics arrived soon thereafter and transported the boy to the nearby Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne.
The boy’s mother, Adrienne Harris, was at work when she got the call informing her that her son suffered the SCA. Frantic, she headed for the hospital. “I beat the ambulance in,” Harris recalls.
Fortunately, her son was stable. He was placed under the supervision and care of both a respiratory team and a cardiology team for eight days as they tried to determine what had triggered the SCA.
“I remember saying to them, ‘Something has been going on,’” Harris says. “‘Something is dreadfully wrong. It’s your job to find out what it is because we cannot have this happen again.’”
After undergoing a series of tests, including stress tests designed to trigger another SCA, Harris’ son was diagnosed with catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT), a rare genetic heart rhythm disorder in which physical exertion and emotional stress can trigger life-threatening abnormal heartbeats.
The boy was prescribed medication to manage his condition and is now doing well, even participating in sports such as hockey and golf. Furthermore, recognising the importance of accessible AEDs and CPR training, Trinity Grammar School re-examined its first aid plan and purchased more AEDs to place around the school.
“The principal decided that they didn’t have enough AEDs because they realised that if they had to go to the other end of the school and back again, it was too long,” Harris explained. “So they’ve bought more units that are around the school now and they trained us all in CPR. You just don’t realize how many people are not aware until you need something.”