On Wednesday evening at around 4:45 p.m., Israel’s emergency services received an urgent call from an 80-year-old man on home oxygen therapy. He was suffering from shortness of breath in his home on Ein Tsukim Street in Kiryat Gat and required immediate medical assistance. A mobile intensive care ambulance was dispatched to the scene and the paramedic arrived in order to treat the patient. United Hatzalah volunteers did not receive the information regarding the emergency. When the ambulance team arrived, they found the patient had deteriorated and lost consciousness. The paramedic at the scene requested backup to assist in the CPR efforts.  

United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Oded Peretz had just arrived home from work at the time of the emergency. He received the notification on his communication device that the intensive care ambulance had requested assistance with a resuscitation and rushed over in his car to assist. 

 

Less than a minute later, Oded arrived at the patient’s home which was located just a few blocks down from where he lives. He joined the resuscitative efforts as soon as he got there, assisting the paramedic with providing compressions, ventilations and whatever else was needed. After 15 minutes of continuous CPR, the combined team succeeded at restoring the man’s pulse. Once the patient was stable enough he was transferred to the intensive care ambulance where he was transported to the Barzilai Medical Center for further care.

 

“Every successful resuscitation I am part of is different, but each time it makes me so happy when I help save a life,” said Oded after the incident. “The man’s wife was ecstatic when we told her that her husband’s pulse returned. It was so special to be a part of that and a part of reuniting the couple and allowing them to live their lives to the fullest together. I’m just sorry that I didn’t receive the alert earlier as I would have perhaps been able to help more.” 

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