Everything happened the way it should have when bystanders acted quickly to combat the “perfect storm” of medical complications that stopped Dave Durant’s heart from beating.
Around 10 a.m. on Sunday, March 20, the 48-year-old Vernon resident had just finished a 5k run on a treadmill at Planet Fitness in Oneida. The workout was routine. He wiped down the equipment and headed to the drinking fountain, as usual. The next thing he remembers is waking up on a stretcher, being wheeled into an ambulance.
Luckily for Durant, when his heart stopped beating, there happened to be a nurse and a physician in the building. The gym is also equipped with an Automated External Defibrillator and staff trained on identifying situations in which to use it.
Dr. John Wight, of the Tri-Valley Family Practice in Vernon, was on the treadmill in front of Durant, listening to music, when his wife pulled the headphones out of his ears and told him a man had collapsed and 911 was being called. Going over to Durant, Wight said it looked like he had fainted or fallen. As he tried to figure out what was wrong, he noticed he was barely breathing. He checked for a pulse and asked for the AED.
Oneida Healthcare RN Cindy Ewing, who happens to be a CPR instructor, was exercising when her friend got her attention to tell her about Durant.
“By the time I walked over there, the Planet Fitness staff members had already had the AED out and were starting to apply the AED pads to his chest,” she said. “Dr. Wight was at the head of the patient. He was totally blue. He wasn’t breathing at all so I just started doing compressions on him.”
Ewing continued doing chest compressions on Durant until the AED analyzing his heart identified a shockable rhythm.
“The patient was in full cardiac arrest,” she said.
Durant, who is CPR certified himself and whose wife is a nurse, was shocked once by the defibrillator and Ewing continued compressions until Oneida Fire and Rescue arrived. At that point, Wight said Durant began “coming around” and was disoriented.
Oneida Firefighter Darrin Ball, who was one of the rescue workers who responded to the 911 call, said the patient was blue when he arrived but was breathing.