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Passersby’s CPR skills give man second chance
Published November 18, 2009
For Lloyd Newton it seemed like an average Monday at work. Little did he know, it was a day that would change his life forever.
“Today’s my birthday,” Newton said. “Today I’m 1 year old.”
One year ago, the 71-year-old Seguin resident was in Lulling at work talking with his foreman about the day’s tasks. Suddenly, he collapsed. The stunned foreman ran into the store to call 9-1-1.
Lara Bucek, from Victoria, was running late to work that morning and was stopped at an intersection when she saw an unusual scene — a man running into the a nearby store and a cowboy hat on the ground. Then, she saw a body.
She decided to stop and help. Newton had no pulse, and he was not breathing. Without giving it a second thought, she began giving him the lifesaving CPR that she had learned the year before in a lifeguard training course.
After several minutes of CPR, the ambulance arrived on the scene.
An exhausted Bucek told the EMT’s they could take over, but they told her to keep at it while they prepared the defibrillator.
After four shocks his heart started pumping, and he was flown to Seton Hospital in Austin to receive a stint in his heart.
Today, Newton refers to that day as his birthday, and he says Bucek is his guardian angel.
“I thank God that Lara knew CPR,” Newton said. “Otherwise, I would not be here today.”
Lulling emergency technicians agreed, and credited Bucek with saving Newton’s life.
After the fateful event, Newton and his wife Alice learned CPR. Newton said he realized the importance of knowing the technique, which has the potential to save lives.
“I think it’s very important to know how to save lives,” Newton said. “Everyone should know how. They should be teaching it in the schools.”
Pam Lee, director of clinical education at Guadalupe Regional Medical Center agrees. Once a month GRMC offers a First Aid and CPR class for anyone interested.
“Not everyone has a heart attack in a hospital,” Lee said. “When you have a heart attack in the grocery store or a restaurant, you want someone there who knows CPR. With CPR, the quicker it’s started, the better the outcome of survival is.”
Lee said it is important for everyone to know basic lifesaving skills like CPR, and those skills are taught in many classes at GRMC, including the First Aid and CPR Class.
The class is held on a Saturday once a month from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
After completing the course, participants receive a CPR certification card from the American Heart Association that is good for two years.
The class costs $45, and comes with a supplemental workbook that costs $15, which is recommended for someone who hasn’t taken the class before.
Lee said that knowing the basics of CPR is what’s important.
“These days the American Heart Association is really stressing good, strong compressions,” Lee said. “So many people become so preoccupied with the breathing, they don’t do good compressions. Knowing CPR is so important because it saves lives.”
If anyone is interested in taking a CPR course at GRMC, contact Pam Lee at 830-401-7356.
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