Incidents
Image credit: Getty Images
Phindile Mthethwa is a Basic Life Support medic at ER24 West Metro. She credits bystanders with helping to save a man’s life by performing CPR when he suffered a cardiac arrest.
The morning air was still cool when the radio crackled into life. Another call, another emergency – but this one would remind me why I chose this profession and why community response matters more than people realise. “Collapsed jogger on the promenade,” came the dispatch.
The scene of the emergency
When we arrived, six people were attending to a man in his 50s – a fit-looking jogger who had collapsed. They weren’t just panicked bystanders; they were working together calmly and efficiently to save his life. The patient was unconscious, but the people around him knew what to do and were focused on doing it.
One woman had positioned herself at the patient’s head, carefully monitoring his airway. A man who clearly had medical training was performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) with textbook precision. A third man, a doctor who happened to be on the scene, was feeling for a pulse and calmly directing the others on what to do next.
Professional response kicks in
We grabbed the automated external defibrillator (AED) from our ambulance, along with oxygen equipment, suction devices, various cardiac medications, and a bag-valve-mask (BVM) for assisted ventilation. Lee Cooper, an ER24 Emergency Care Practitioner (ECP) was also on site to add another layer of advanced care.
My partner, Intermediate Life Support Practitioner (ILS) Farouk Peter, and I quickly assessed the situation and set up our equipment.
The critical moment
We attached the AED pads to the patient's chest and waited for the machine’s analysis. These devices read the heart’s electrical activity and determine whether a shock might restore normal rhythm. The message read: “Shockable rhythm detected.”
“Everyone clear!” we warned, making sure no one was touching the patient. For a brief moment, the world seemed to fall silent, except for the sound of the ocean nearby. We delivered the shock. And then – a miracle that never gets old, no matter how many times you see it.
The patient responded after just one shock from the AED. We felt for a pulse, which was back. He was breathing again, though not strongly enough to support himself adequately. Lee decided to intubate, securing the patient’s airway.
We quickly loaded the patient into the ambulance and transported him to hospital where he could receive the cardiac care he needed.
The real heroes
Here’s what struck me most about this call: the outcome wasn’t just thanks to our equipment or training. Those six people, particularly the doctor and the people doing CPR, are the reason this story has a happy ending.
Knowing how to do basic first aid could save someone’s life. That’s not just a slogan we put on posters. When someone collapses from cardiac arrest, brain damage begins after just minutes without oxygen. The fact that bystanders immediately started CPR and worked together calmly gave this patient a fighting chance before we even arrived.
Our equipment matters – AEDs, medications, and advanced airway tools are vital to saving lives. That’s why calling 084 124 is crucial. But just as important is the immediate action taken by people on the scene before we arrive. On days when training, equipment, timing, and public response all come together, we get to witness something extraordinary. And that’s what makes my work so meaningful.