Heartstart helps and rescuers receive rewards
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in General Published: Monday, 01 September 08 - 12:40 PM (GMT) Last Updated: Monday, 01 September 08 - 04:13 PM (GMT) |
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Recognition of Achievement
Dane Phillips and Steven Snooks were in a cafe in Hereford on the 14th May 2008 when they heard bottle smashing and someone shouting for help. They ran out and found a man on the floor bleeding severely, holding his head in his hand. They weren’t sure initially where the blood was coming from as his hands and head were very bloody. They shouted for a tea towel from the café as the blood was spurting out onto the road (across to the white line in the middle of the road). After looking at the injury, they realised that it was his hand that was cut badly and they wrapped the tea towel around it. As the blood was coming through, they fetched another tea towel to place on the top. Four police motor cycles on a training course stopped at the incident and told them to carry on as they were doing a grand job! Dane telephoned for the ambulance. When the paramedics arrived Dane and Steven had sat the man on a chair, helped keep the man calm and helped him into the ambulance. It appeared that the casualty had fallen over, cutting his hand on a bottle which was in a carrier bag. He had severed a main tendon and would need surgery as the wound was so deep. After the casualty had been taken to hospital they both cleaned up the area of blood and glass. The man in question spent two weeks in hospital.
Both Dane and Steven had attended a Heartstart course a few weeks earlier in connection with the CSV (Community Service Volunteers) in order to gain skills to become more employable. They had been on a voluntary employability skills programme organised and run by the CSV in Hereford.
Dane and Steven said that having done the Heartstart course they knew what to do, how to call the ambulance and deal with someone bleeding severely as they had just learned it. It helped them keep calm and they would definitely recommend the course to others.
The ambulance service commented "This incident highlights the relevance and importance of training courses such as "Heartstart". For a minimal amount of training (2 hours) people will feel confident to deal with what can be a potentially life saving incident. West Midlands Ambulance Service fully endorses such programmes and offers their thanks for what they did prior to the Ambulance arriving".
Pictured above from left to right Dane Phillips, Paul Keetch MP and Herefordshire Heartstart Patron, Steven Snooks and Sue Davies - Herefordshire Heartstart Coordinator
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