Last week Thursday, early in the morning, a 63-year-old man was riding his bicycle when he began to feel pain in the middle of his chest. The man lost consciousness, collapsed, and fell onto the pavement. As a result of the fall, the man suffered serious head trauma and massive bleeding. Worried eyewitnesses called emergency medical services for help.

Hanan Kadosh, a United Hatzalah volunteer EMT, recently returned from a late night shift at work and had just gotten to bed when his proximity alert went off, alerting him to the emergency. The incident took place less than 1 km away from Hanan’s home. The dedicated volunteer, got back out of bed and immediately got into his car, and drove to the scene. Hanan was the first responder at the scene.

Hanan initiated chest compressions on the man. As the mobile intensive care ambulance (MICU) arrived, he began to alternate compressions with medical personnel from the MICU. When Hanan wasn’t performing compressions he provided assisted ventilation to the man while the paramedics attached a defibrillator and provided the man with 4 electrical shocks. 

The man regained a pulse but was still breathing through assisted ventilation. Hanan bandaged the man’s head injury and attached a cervical collar to his neck to immobilize him and prevent possible cervical spinal cord injuries. After the man was stabilized Hanan and the paramedics checked the man’s vital signs, which thankfully were returning to normal.  They then put him on a stretcher and the man was transferred to the nearby hospital for further care. 

After the incident was over Hanan recounted; ״I’m very glad that today’s incident ended successfully. Being an EMT isn’t easy when the patient passes away, it’s never obvious the patient will live. I always go above and beyond to try to save an individual’s life even when I’m exhausted from my late-night shifts. Today’s incident brought me great satisfaction when the man’s pulse returned and he began to regain consciousness. It is for moments like this that I put myself out there as a volunteer and respond to as many emergencies as I can. I hope to visit the man in the hospital in the coming days and check on his situation.”

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