Kawartha Lakes paramedics are looking to recognize several residents who performed CPR on a man during a medical call last week.
The City of Kawartha Lakes says paramedics Bruck MacKay and Francine Scott were dispatched to a 911 call for a senior man who reportedly collapsed at the intersection of Cambray and Elm Tree streets in the hamlet of Cambray, just 13 kilometres north of Lindsay.
The paramedics say that upon arrival, they discovered some residents had already started CPR on the victim. They continued CPR while being instructed by MacKay and Scott, who were setting up a defibrillator. The residents also continued to assist after the paramedics took over care of the man.
“They were all extremely helpful,” said MacKay. “The residents took our direction and delivered perfectly on everything we asked of them. They did everything from ripping tape, picking up our garbage on the ground and grabbing our bags.”
As they prepared to depart for the hospital, the paramedics say they managed to get a pulse from the victim. They said that from inside the ambulance, they could hear an eruption of cheers and applause.
“We were not the heroes, they were,” said Scott. “Kawartha Lakes Paramedic Services would like to express our thanks and gratitude to them if we can find them.”
The man was taken to Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay.
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Acting paramedic chief Andrew Rafton says it was an “incredible and inspiring” event — and happened to come in the middle of national Paramedic Services Week, which runs May 26 to June 1.
“We want to thank all those individuals involved,” he said. “The co-operation and quick thinking among this group of strangers, along with their shared participation with paramedics, gave this man a fighting chance. We hope that the public can help us find these Good Samaritans.”
The city is requesting information to identify those who assisted in the medical call. Anyone with information can contact the city via email.