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‘They should know they’re appreciated, and what it means to give somebody life. If it wasn’t for them, I probably wouldn’t be here’
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Brian Sander was working at his Calgary business in April 2020 when the lights went out.
“I just went dark,” said Sander, 67. “Seven or eight days later, I woke up in the hospital. I was totally unaware of what happened.”
Sander would soon piece together what had happened that day: he had suffered sudden cardiac arrest, sustaining a serious concussion when he hit his head against his desk as he collapsed. He was without a pulse for more than 10 minutes, as co-workers completed CPR while awaiting help from first responders.
Fire crews on scene administered a defibrillator shock to Sander, restarting his heart. Paramedics stabilized him and rushed him to Foothills Medical Centre — quick, heroic action that he credits with saving his life.
“They should know they’re appreciated, and what it means to give somebody life,” he said. “If it wasn’t for them, I probably wouldn’t be here.”
Sander had the opportunity Sunday to meet with Amanda and Tyler, two Alberta Health Services EMS paramedics who responded to his health crisis, and thank them for their service. It aligns with Paramedic Services Week in Canada, which continues through May 29.
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“Getting to see the end result, and seeing Brian back to his normal life a year later, that’s special to see,” said Tyler, whose last name Postmedia has agreed to omit due to safety concerns.
It’s the first time in both Amanda’s 13-year career and Tyler’s 18 years as a paramedic they have met a patient after an incident.
“It’s very meaningful to see you standing here today, in very different circumstances than a year ago,” Amanda told Sander.
“It’s a nice reminder to us that the stuff we’re doing, that we almost take as the day to day, has a really big impact on people.”
The incident led Sander to look at his life through a different lens, and not take for granted his daily experiences. It was important to him to meet and thank those who helped keep him alive.
“I’m so grateful. It’s not often where you get to a place where your life is in somebody else’s hands and unless, God forbid, it happens to you, you don’t always think when (an) ambulance is driving by with its sirens on and you have to pull over that people like this are going and saving someone’s life,” Sander said.
“I’m just glad that I’m here to thank them.”
Sander has now installed a defibrillator at his workplace to be ready for if anyone else goes into cardiac arrest. Paramedics said the survival rate for sudden cardiac arrest is only about five per cent.
“It increases outcomes big time to have that first shock delivered,” Amanda said.
In a statement Sunday, Alberta Health Minister Tyler Shandro also marked Paramedic Services Week, recognizing their elevated role through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As front-line health-care providers, paramedics play a key role in Alberta’s pandemic response,” Shandro said.
“Paramedics are providing testing and vaccinations while continuing to deliver essential care to Albertans, at a time of unprecedented risk to themselves and their families.”
jherring@postmedia.com
Twitter: @jasonfherring
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