Truck Driver’s Life Saved By Smartphone App

Drew Basse, a 57-year-old truck driver, almost died from a sudden cardiac arrest but was saved by an off-duty firefighter, Scott Brawner and his phone.

Brawner, who’s been a firefighter with Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue in Oregon for over 20 years, was at a nearby 24-hour fitness and listening to Pandora when an alarm sounded on his phone.

The alarm came from an app called Pulse Point, which notifies first responders and citizens who’ve been trained in CPR when they’re within walking distance of a person in cardiac arrest. Brawner said the app is easy to use, even for someone with minimal CPR training and encourages citizens to sign up for it.

With the alarm, a map popped up showing Brawner the victim’s exact location. He ran outside and in the gym parking lot found a police officer who called 911.

Arriving on the scene, Brawner found Base slumped over in his car, unconscious and not breathing.

“I picked him up from the front seat, laid him the ground, and performed CPR. I think my rescuer just kicked in at that point,” Brawner explained.

After several hundred rounds of chest compressions, breaking many of Basse’s ribs, a fire truck arrived and on-duty firefighters took over.

Because Brawner administered CPR so quickly, Basse is expected to recover fully with no loss of cognitive function.

Brawner reunited with Basse and his family in the hospital where Basse teased him for breaking his ribs.

“Then he got really emotional, and he said thank you for saving my life. Giving me more time to spend with my grandchildren and my family.”

According to Clackamas Fire District, sudden cardiac arrest is different than a heart attack and happens when the heart’s electrical system malfunctions and the heart stops functioning properly.

The chance of survival decreases by 10 percent each minute that passes without resuscitation. After 10 minutes, the chances of survival are minimal.

[su_button url=”https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pulsepoint/id500772134?mt=8″ target=”blank” style=”soft” background=”#0C5A98″ size=”5″ text_shadow=”0px 0px 0px #0C5A98″]Download for iOS[/su_button]  [su_button url=”https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=mobi.firedepartment” target=”blank” style=”soft” background=”#0C5A98″ size=”5″ text_shadow=”0px 0px 0px #0C5A98″]Download for Android[/su_button]

Source
www.opb.org