By EMS1 Staff
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — A man who nearly died after suffering cardiac arrest in May thanked the paramedics and dispatchers who helped save him.
Daily News Journal reported that Toby Dudley returned to his home when his wife, Connie, heard a crash.
She found her husband on the floor with a purple face and called 911, and dispatcher Marsha Duncan instructed Dudley’s son on how to perform CPR.
“We started right away, as soon as we got the call, we started CPR,” she said. “No one was trained, so I let them know that I could help them if they wanted to start, and they wanted to start.”
911 supervisor Vickie Prater said Dudley’s son’s quick actions may have saved his life.
“We’ve had only about eight people walk out of the hospital in the past two years,” she said.
Two minutes after being dispatched, a team of five paramedics arrived at the Dudley’s home, including John Graves and his partner, Travis Rorabaugh.
The family was able to thank the paramedics in a meeting organized by paramedic Brent Carter.
“I am very happy and surprised and happy to see him up and going as well as he is, it’s pretty amazing,” Graves said.
Connie called Rorabaugh her “superman” for working to save Toby.
“It was something I felt need recognizing the medics and the dispatchers that are behind the scenes, to actually meet somebody that did survive a cardiac arrest event,” Carter said.
Toby, who has since had two stents put into his heart, said he now has a new outlook on his health and credited his life to the paramedics who saved him.
"[RCEMS] have every reason to be proud of what they do. I’m just happy to be here and thankful to anyone who had anything to do with it,” he said. “It’s been a life-changing experience.”