A usually fit and healthy man – with 30 years’ experience in the police force – who went into cardiac arrest while making a routine visit to the gym, has been reunited with the emergency team who saved his life.
On the morning of 13 May 2024, 56-year-old Richard Iles was doing a cardio workout on the treadmill, and the next moment he was slowly gaining consciousness on the floor while surrounded by clinicians from EMAS and Lincolnshire and Lincs & Notts Ambulance Service (LNAA).
Luckily for Richard, off-duty paramedics Jordan Griffiths and Lee McLaren, along with off-duty trainee Advanced Clinical Practitioner Naomi Richmond from Queen’s Medical Centre, also happened to be exercising at the same gym. This means when they realised Richard had gone into cardiac arrest, they were able to spring into action.
Jordan Griffiths said: “I was chatting to Lee, who was telling me how he had just finished his paramedic course, when I saw Richard in the distance collapse and come off the treadmill at speed.
“I instantly knew something was very wrong, so Lee, Naomi, and myself went over to do a medical assessment of Richard.
“I started cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on Richard and asked for someone to go and get a defibrillator, while also instructing the gym to clear people away while I continued with CPR.
“While a member of staff called 999 (which was answered by Emergency Medical Advisor Louise Hamer), Lee and I were doing CPR on Richard in two-minute windows.
As Jordan and Lee performed CPR, someone collected a public access defibrillator which was situated at the gym. While having the defib attached to Richard as chest compressions were being performed, the defib advised his heart was in a shockable rhythm.
Jordan continued saying: “While it felt weird doing CPR without having the usual paramedic equipment with me – meaning I couldn’t cannulate or ventilate Richard or see his heart readings on the electrocardiogram (ECG) machine – I was still able to perform vital chest compressions until on-duty crews could take over.
“All I could look at to give me an insight was the defib that was attached to Richard, as it advised me when to deliver a shock to his heart, when it was identified as being in a shockable rhythm.
“What I did with the CPR and use of the public access defib was simple but effective. This can be done by any member of the public with the knowledge and confidence to do so.
“My key message is that any bystander willing to perform CPR and use a defib if one is available, can drastically improve the chances of survival for a patient until a medical crew arrives to commence advanced life support.”
Adding to what Jordan mentioned, Naomi Richmond said: “If a member of the public is able to access a defibrillator quickly, while someone else is doing chest compressions on the person having a cardiac arrest, that’s what saves people’s lives.
“You don’t need to have specialist training for that. You can watch videos online or you can attend basic life support sessions in the community to learn how to do those things.
“Also, if you follow the advice on the defib, it’s better than doing absolutely nothing.”
Lee McLaren, Jordan Griffiths, and Naomi Richmond next to the defibrillator at the gym which was used to help save Richard's life
Following the on-scene interventions of Jordan, Lee, and Naomi – arriving on scene to continue with advanced life support were EMAS paramedics Peter Hughes, Sheryl Dolan, and Alex Heath; University of Nottingham Community First Responder Dr Hannah Soanes; and from LNAA, HEMS paramedic Craig Blair, Senior HEMS paramedic Erica Ley, and Dr Shayda Karimi.
Craig Blair said: “We were there to provide post-arrest care because quite often with cardiac arrest patients they need sedation, and they might need emergency anaesthetic.
“If they re-arrest, they might need a higher level of intervention to protect their airway.
“What Jordan, Lee and Naomi were able to do for Richard in those first few minutes really made the difference to Richard’s survival and the fact he’s not suffered any damage to his brain.
“When someone is in cardiac arrest and they’re not receiving CPR, their chances just drop minute by minute.”
Speaking of that day, Richard said: “I’ve been very lucky – thanks to the quick-thinking actions of those on scene, and the crews that responded to the 999 call, they got my heart beating again at the gym.
“I was then taken to Nottingham City Hospital, where I remained for nine days while I recovered.
“It was a surreal experience to know I had died in the gym and then felt well the next day in hospital.
“Without the early intervention of everyone involved, I don’t think I’d be here today to tell you my story – I’m extremely grateful to all of them who gave me a fighting chance at survival.”
On reuniting with the crew, Richard added: “It’s very surreal and very emotional because the fact is, without these guys I wouldn’t be here.
“I’m very grateful to everyone, including the gym staff, who played a really big part on that day.”
Following his stay in hospital, Richard had an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) fitted, followed by weeks of rehabilitation sessions, and in his own words, “is back in the gym on a regular basis and living life to the full.”
Richard’s ICD is a small, battery-powered device that monitors and regulates his heart rhythm and delivers electrical pulses to correct any abnormalities. If needed in future, it can also send a larger electrical shock to his heart to “reboot” it and restore a normal rhythm.
Top tips
A medical emergency involving the heart, such as a cardiac arrest or a heart attack can happen to anyone at any time.
A cardiac arrest (what happened to Richard Iles) is when your heart suddenly stops pumping blood around your body. Although it is sometimes mistaken for a heart attack, if someone is in cardiac arrest they collapse suddenly and will be unconscious, unresponsive, and not breathing or breathing normally – this may mean they’re making gasping noises.
A heart attack happens when there’s a sudden loss of blood flow to a part of the heart muscle. This causes symptoms such as pain or a feeling of pressure or a burning in the chest. Someone having a heart attack is usually conscious.
Both a cardiac arrest and a heart attack are medical emergencies, and you should call 999 straight away.
While we don’t want to scare people, it is important to consider the following tips to help increase yours and others’ chances of survival should the worst happen:
Cardiac arrest
- Learn how to do CPR – receiving CPR within the first three to four minutes of a cardiac arrest is crucial in terms of maximising the chances of survival and reducing the risk of the person living with a brain injury if they do survive. The British Heart Foundation also has really helpful resources on CPR and defibrillators.
- When calling 999 for someone who is in cardiac arrest, in addition to being advised to perform CPR, if there is someone else with you, they may be advised to go and fetch a public access defibrillator if we identify an available one nearby. They are often in places like train stations, schools, and shopping centres. Anyone can use one and you don’t need training to do so.
Heart attack
- If you’re experiencing chest pains, try not to exert yourself physically unnecessarily, such as going upstairs to bed if you’re already downstairs – instead lay yourself down on the sofa. Most chest pain is not a sign of anything serious but you should get medical advice just in case. If the pain gets worse (makes your chest feel tight or heavy) or rapidly starts progressing to other parts of the body eg arms, back, neck or jaw – this could be a heart attack. If this happens, call 999 and remain downstairs so the responding ambulance crew will have easy access to you.
- If you have had a heart attack, it's important that you rest while you wait for an ambulance, to avoid unnecessary strain on your heart. When you call 999, the Emergency Medical Advisor may advise you to take aspirin for this chest pain. Aspirin helps to thin your blood and improve blood flow to your heart.