On Monday just before midnight, a man in his 60s suffered a cardiac arrest in his home on Anne Frank Street in Ramat Gan, and his son immediately called emergency services and began administering CPR.
United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yaakov Shlezinger was the first EMT, having interrupted a late-night business meeting one block away to respond to the emergency. Yaakov drove to the address and arrived in under two minutes.
As he entered the house, family members directed him to the bathroom where he found the son performing chest compressions on his father. After verifying the absence of a pulse, Yaakov relieved the son and took over performing compressions for several minutes until other responders arrived.
United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Yechezkel Rucham joined Yaakov’s efforts and was about to attach his defibrillator when the EMTs checked the man’s pulse once again and were surprised to find that it had been restored. It was weak but steady and the first responders understood that the patient’s heart had begun beating on its own and they could stop the chest compressions while continuing assisted ventilation.
A few minutes later, the patient’s pulse intensified and he began breathing on his own but appeared to still be gasping for air. The volunteers gently pulled him out of the bathroom and laid him down, all the while providing him with high-flow oxygen.
As they continued to monitor his vital signs, a mobile intensive care ambulance arrived and the medical personnel at the scene carried the patient out into the ambulance and he was transported to the hospital for further treatment.
“It’s always a great feeling when you help revive someone,” Yechezkel said after the incident. “In this instance, I think we also significantly helped the family understand the situation.”
Yaakov added, “There’s no greater thing in this world than to save a life. I am happy that I was able to participate in this.”
