By Kelsey Landis
The Telegraph
GODFREY, Ill. — When Ginger Woodman realized her husband was having a heart attack, she did what any loving wife would do. She called 911.
Paramedics from the Godfrey Fire Protection District were the first to respond on that day — the same day of a family Christmas gathering. Doug Dankenbring, a firefighter and paramedic, and Eddie Knezevich, a firefighter and EMT, were the first responders who kept Jess Woodman stable until an ambulance arrived.
Now, three years later, the Woodmans are donating a new CPR system to the fire district in thanks for helping save Jess Woodman’s life. The system, called ResQCPR, is proven to improve the likelihood of survival in adults who have experienced a non-traumatic, sudden heart attack by making CPR more efficient.
The Woodman said they had been looking for a way to give back to the district. When they read an article in The Telegraph about the ResQCPR system, they decided a donation for another device was the way to show their gratitude.
“We thought, this has got to be it. The chief had said he would like to have a few more (systems), and we thought we could help with one,” Ginger Woodman said. “It means the world that he (Jess) is still here, that we still have a life together.”
Doctors later said Dankenbring and Knezevich were able to help save the man’s life. Jess Woodman only remembers flashes from that day, but says he is grateful to the first responders and others who helped save him from the heart attack, which was caused by blood clots in both legs.
Fire Chief Erik Kambarian thanked the Woodmans for the donation, adding that the responders were only doing their job. Jess Woodman says their jobs go beyond just doing what is necessary.
“These guys say they’re just doing their job, but they’re doing far beyond that,” Jess Woodman said. “Sure, it’s a job. I’ll give you that, but it takes a special person to do what they do. In my mind, it’s the same with anyone that has the wherewithal and the desire to be a first responder of any kind.”
Manual CPR was part of saving Woodman’s life, though the ResQCPR system could have been more effective. The Godfrey fire district was the first in the state to acquire the new system. The district purchased two devices, which cost about $1,300 each.
The ResQCPR device is made up of two components — a suction cup about the size of a toilet plunger used on the patient’s chest, and a pod that connects to a breathing bag and regulates airflow to help the victim breathe at near-normal levels. Used together, the devices improve blood flow to the brain and vital organs, and increase the likelihood of survival.
The plunger, which has handles for the first responder, suctions to the patient’s chest. The responder then pushes down and pulls back up. The device, which also has a metronome, makes both the pushing and the pulling motion in CPR more effective, but it’s the pulling back that increases blood return by actively “re-expanding” the chest.
“It looks like it will be a lifesaver,” Ginger Woodman said. “And that’s what we’re hoping for.”
Barbara Rizzo, a salesperson for the company behind the device, Zoll Medical Corp., said she lost her husband to heart attack.
“When I see the community coming forward on behalf of it, it really touches me personally,” Rizzo said.
The fire district officially put the systems into service last week. They have not had to use them yet, Kambarian said.
Copyright 2016 The Telegraph