Learning CPR is a valuable skill at any point during your life. Cardiac Care trains hundreds of individuals and businesses in CPR, and we are always honored when we can report that our ‘graduates’ helped save a life. In this case, the training provided by our team at Cardiac Care prepared two gentlemen to save the life of a doctor. His story is below.
Hopefully, most people will never need to use this skill, but sometimes it can be the difference between life and death. This was true for Dr. Kevin Volpp, a heart researcher and M.D. in Philadelphia, who suffered from sudden cardiac arrest at a restaurant in July 2021.
Always Assume It Can Be You
Dr. Volpp was in the best shape of his life, preparing for an Iron Man that would take place later in the year with his 15-year-old daughter. Not only was Dr. Volpp an athlete that took exercise seriously, but he also had a past that had pushed him to do the necessary screenings for heart health. As a heart researcher himself, he knew what risk factors would contribute to any heart condition. His own father had suffered from heart issues, so Dr. Volpp was already seeing a cardiologist prior to his heart attack.
Dr. Volpp was active in preventing cardiac arrest, and yet it still happened to him. It is incredibly important to know your health history so you can work with your doctor, but even the most prepared can still be taken by surprise.
Cardiac Care Training Instrumental
The night of Dr. Volpp’s heart attack was a normal evening. He was having dinner with his daughter, friends, and his daughter’s coaches (two incredible athletes and recent Cardiac Care trainees). He had noticed earlier in the day that his typical exercise routine had seemed more difficult, but he didn’t think much about it. Before dinner was served, Dr. Volpp collapsed at the table.
Cardiac Care was instrumental in saving the life of Dr. Volpp. Because of their due diligence to be CPR certified by our organization, the coaches next to Dr. Volpp were able to administer CPR immediately. Dr. Volpp is still alive today because of this life-saving training. He is one of the lucky ones, though. As little as 10% of people survive cardiac arrest outside of the hospital.
We can increase that number together. If we come together to get medically trained for CPR and other life-saving techniques, we could save hundreds of thousands of lives. Today, Dr. Volpp is steadily regaining his strength while researching ways to prevent cardiac arrest deaths.
You can read more about this incredible story here.