Another day at the office – with a defibrillator at your fingertips

WEDNESDAY, January 23, 2019 (American Heart Association) – On National Red Wear Day in 2018, few people in the law firm of Nashville Lewis, Thomason, King, Krieg and Waldrop have taken note of the occasion, which draws attention to heart disease being the No. 1 murderer of women.

"I think we had forgotten it was that day," said Tania Freeman, the company's business development manager.

Still, February 2, 2018 has turned out to be a day that many of them would never forget, especially Tania and John Lewis.

John, a 70-year-old partner of the firm, started working not thinking about hearts, but about the flu season. He had been sore and congested all week and his wife, Barbara, was at home with the flu and a 102 degree fever.

He returned home early, promising his colleagues to go to the doctor. While waiting for the elevator to descend from the 25th floor, he stopped to talk with two colleagues, including his son.

Then his heart stopped.

Tania was in her office when a colleague said that John had fainted in the hall. Tania grabbed her mobile phone and went to badess the situation, thinking that she would call 911 if necessary. She arrived at the scene to find staff members Ellen Black, Christin Bryant and Tasra Lumpkin playing CPR. Someone had already called 911.

Someone else recovered the DEA from the office – an automated external defibrillator – and brought it to John's side. Tania noticed that she was not used yet, so she lit it just in case.

John was in cardiac arrest, which basically means that the heart of his heart was out of order.

Christin and Tasra took turns doing the CPR. Tania put the pads of DEA on John and everyone backed down. She followed the DEA's prompts and pressed the shock button.

The shock did not work.

They started doing CPR again until the machine told them to continue their test. Tania did it.

Shortly after, John raised his hand and grabbed his hand. He started talking and tried to get up. Everyone was surprised, especially the paramedics who arrived shortly after.

In addition to the cardiac arrest, John suffered a heart attack – a crisis so serious that it is called the "widow maker". The difference is that a cardiac arrest is a problem in the electrical system of the heart, while the heart attack is more like a plumbing problem. Something is blocked. In this case, it was the left anterior descending anterior artery, a major pathway that delivers blood to the heart.

John was rushed to the hospital. Less than 26 minutes after the paramedics arrived at the office, John received two stents to keep narrowed lanes in his heart.

"If we did not have this AED, this story would probably have a different ending," Tania said.

The DEA had been bought years earlier, after the CP had saved the life of another lawyer, though away from his office.

Twelve people were trained in the use of CPR and AEDs – lawyers, secretaries, paralegals, and administrative staff – so that at least one person trained would likely be in the office in case they were not. emergency.

John's heart event was the first in this office building. The building management reacted by adding AEDs to each floor and in their own office. They also provided training to 1,000 office workers. More than half of the staff at John's law firm was present.

John returned to work three weeks later, with television cameras greeting him at the door.

"I'm very grateful for what everyone has done for me," said John, who has talked to many of his clients about the experience, encouraging them to get AEDs and train their staff.

The law firm staff did not want to wait for the next National Day of Red Wear. A few weeks after the tragedy at the office, staff members took the initiative to organize their own Red Harbor Day.

And on February 1, they will wear red again to celebrate the first anniversary of John's life.