Cardiff man brought back to life by CPR and early defibrillator use

When Mike Williams from Port Talbot attended a First Aid at Work refresher course with Gareth Parsons last October, he didn’t know that the skills he learnt there would help him save someone’s life just two months later.

Mike, who now lives in Caerphilly, was on duty as a Security Officer in Cardiff on 6^th December 2022 when he had a phone call about a medical emergency nearby. Along with some of his colleagues, Mike quickly grabbed the defibrillator at reception and made his way to the scene. On arrival, Mike and his colleagues discovered a male lying face down on the floor.

They rolled the patient onto his back and did the initial checks. They quickly discovered that the patient was unresponsive, correctly assuming he had gone into cardiac arrest. Mike and his colleagues started CPR immediately and promptly connected the patient to a defibrillator.

“After numerous rounds of chest compressions and at least three shocks from the defibrillator, he began to start breathing again.”  Mike recalls.

Shortly after the patient had been resuscitated, paramedics arrived at the scene and took over. The patient was rushed to hospital and received surgery on his heart. He is now safely recovering at home.

“I would like to thank St John Ambulance Cymru and Gareth Parsons for the training I received, which enabled me to help to successfully save the life of someone who suffered a cardiac arrest.”  Mike said. “I feel immensely proud of myself.”

Mike says “first aid and defibrillator training is so important; the more confident people are to help others, the better.” It’s reported that a patient’s survival chances are reduced by 10% for every passing minute without action following a cardiac arrest. The quicker you act, the more chance you have to save a life.

Gareth Parsons, Mike’s trainer, commented;

“Although I have been a First Aid at Work trainer for nearly 30 years, and have probably trained up to 50,000 people in first aid for adults and children, it is always heart-warming to learn of those skills being put into practice when helping to save a life in the community.”

“Well done to Mike and his team of helpers. Its absolutely brilliant, I am so proud of you all”.

St John Ambulance Cymru’s Defibruary campaign aims to teach as many people as possible the vital CPR and defibrillator knowledge needed to save a life. The campaign which is running throughout February is also encouraging communities in Wales to locate and register their nearest defibrillator using The Circuit. This is so communities can easily identify their nearest defibrillator in an emergency.

Sign up to one of St John Ambulance Cymru’s training courses at www.sjacymru.org.uk/en/page/training so you too can be confident in using a defibrillator, or donate here to support St John Ambulance Cymru’s lifesaving work in communities across Wales.

Visit www.thecircuit.uk to locate and register your nearest defibrillator today.