UBCO students work together to save mature student suffering heart attack

A number of University of British Columbia Okanagan (UBCO) first responder students put their skills to the test when an older student suffered a medical emergency at school.

Murray Forbes, a mature student in his 70s, has been attending classes at UBCO to achieve an engineering degree.

While he normally walks into a quiet entrance at the school, on that particular day he ended up in a fairly busy courtyard in the centre of campus.

He was found unconscious and suffering from a massive heart attack.

While a crowd of students gathered around Forbes, first-year human kinetics student Marissa Burfield was on her way to meet a fellow Emergency First Responder Team (EFRT) member Kim Davarani for breakfast.

“I could see people standing around a man lying on the ground,” Burfield explained.

“I couldn’t really believe it was happening, it was a bit of a shock. But my muscle memory kicked in. You can train so much, but once you’re in a situation, you don’t think—you just move.”

Burfield quickly introduced herself as a first responder and assessed the situation. At the same time, Davarani was answering a call for a suspected seizure in the courtyard.

“I was relieved to find Marissa had taken control of the situation,” Davarani said, explaining that she began checking for a pulse and signs of breathing.

“People thought it was a seizure, but when I started taking the vitals and checking his circulation, I realized this is no longer a seizure call. This was about to become a very intense call.”

After a few minutes, one more EFRT member came to assist in the situation, Morgan Tucker.

“We know the statistics—when someone is in cardiac arrest the outcome can be very grim,” noted Tucker, the most senior EFRT member at the call.

The students used all their resources, relying on some bystanders for help as they performed CPR for 22 minutes and used an automated external defibrillator twice to get the patient’s heart beating.

“We all did our jobs and we didn’t give up,” added Tucker, who graduates this spring. “I never imagined I would be using the skills I have to save a life. I am so thankful we have them.”

Meanwhile, Kailey Newel, a student coordinator for the team was busy communicating with campus security and other campus affiliates involved with the event. She attended the scene afterward to check in on team members.

Forbes was rushed to the hospital and awoke a few days later.

The 77-year-old had previously suffered through two earlier heart attacks and signed a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) form.

“I’ve always been adamant about DNR because I was afraid I would not be competent if I was resuscitated,” Forbes explained.

“This time, of course, I was not capable of making any decisions. And it’s a good thing. Those students stepped in and saved my life.”

The mature student received a pacemaker, new medication for his heart condition and is expected to make a full recovery and plans to continue his studies.

Just a few weeks ago, Forbes was reunited with the EFRT members involved in his incident as they were honoured with a letter of commendation by UBCO’s principal and deputy vice-chancellor, Lesley Cormack, at a small private ceremony.

Forbes, of course, was delighted to meet them. Yet the students remain humble—all saying they simply reacted to the situation as they had been trained to do.

“It was like a happy ending and usually there isn’t a happy ending,” said Burfield.

“It was so great to see him. He was walking well and was all smiles. I feel that was a cherry on top and it makes you feel it was worth it. For some reason, we were at the right place at the right time and we were trained to do the right thing.”

Established in 2016, the EFRT is a volunteer organization that trains UBCO students in several levels of first aid. In return, members are expected to be on duty 12 hours a week during the academic year.

The club has around 35 members, who can be identified when on duty by their red jackets and backpacks.