CFR skills saved my life, says lucky Kieran

BUSINESSMAN Kieran Corcoran is living proof of the success of a new community-based medical response project which has been rolled out across Cork and Kerry.

The 52-year-old father-of-one from Cork city, who suffered full cardiac arrest on the side of a road in 2008, is alive today thanks to Mary O’Sullivan from Mallow, a trained community first responder (CFR).

“I know I am the luckiest man alive today,” Mr Corcoran said as Health Minister Mary Harney launched a new CFR group in Clonakilty, Co Cork.

“These CFR skills are absolutely vital. I’m living proof of it,” he said. “It’s amazing to think you can save a life with this knowledge and fairly basic equipment.”

CFRs have been trained by the Health Service Executive’s (HSE) ambulance service to use an automatic external defibrillator, perform cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and administer aspirin and oxygen to patients.

When someone dials 999 or 112 for an incident such as a cardiac arrest, stroke or sudden collapse, CFRs who live locally are alerted and often arrive on scene before an ambulance. They are a vital link, especially in rural and isolated areas, in the pre-hospital care chain and vastly increase a patient’s chances of survival.

Mr Corcoran suffered a full cardiac arrest while driving home with his wife Carol from Limerick on a rainy Monday in November 2008.

It was to prove one of the luckiest nights of his life. A Garda emergency response unit vehicle, which carries a defibrillator, just happened to pass at the same time.

Carol flagged the car down before Ms O’Sullivan, who was also travelling the same road, stopped to help.

Mr Corcoran had no pulse and wasn’t breathing.

With the help of the gardaí Ms O’Sullivan worked on Mr Corcoran for 40 minutes until paramedics arrived and rushed him to hospital. She saved his life.

She said at least one person in every family should learn CPR.

“For every minute you delay defib, you lessen your chances of survival by 7%-10%,” she warned.

Mr Corcoran was one of several people whose lives were saved by CFRs to attend yesterday’s launch.

Jerry Lawton’s life was saved after he collapsed during a 5km road race in Cobh. He has since joined the Ballinspittle CFR group.

Brian Bruno, a CPR instructor, collapsed while teaching paramedics about defibrillation. He was defibbed by those attending the course.

Donegal man Fergus McCarron, a training and development officer with the North West Ambulance Service, was saved after he collapsed at home when paramedics used a defibrillator he had repaired just hours earlier.

He told Clonakilty’s 22 volunteers that they won’t save everyone, but that it will offer relatives comfort that everything possible was done to help.

Clonakilty CFR’s vice chairman Peter Walsh said the group now has three defibrillators in the town and he encouraged people to volunteer.

“All our members are now available to work with the ambulance service in the hope that, being local to the situation, we can help increase someone’s chance of survival,” he said.