Lifesaver Glasgow student saves man during an exam

Many of us would like to think that faced with a life or death situation, we would spring into action. However, the reality is that due to the bystander effect and simple shock, many individuals would be frozen when faced with a stranger experiencing a medical emergency. Despite these odds, 23 year old Rachel Kerr, performed crucial CPR during her higher biology exam, commenting “Most people were frozen, they didn’t know what to do, I think seeing that made me realise I needed to do something.”

Rachel Kerr is a sports therapy student at the the City of Glasgow College. She was sitting her higher biology exam when two students burst into the room looking for help as a man had collapsed in another room. Rachel immediately and bravely cast her mind to performing CPR that she had learned from her training in the course of her studies. She commented on this moment stating “I just remember thinking: what do I need to do first?”.

Others contacted emergency services while Rachel began to perform CPR, where she gained access to a defibrator. Rachel emphasised that she was able to perform the CPR successfully due to the actions of multiple other women who stepped in where necessary, for example in procuring the aforementioned defibrator at the scene. Thanks to their collective fast thinking, the man became responsive before emergency services arrived at the scene.

Despite the high stress nature of the incident, Rachel decided to finish her exam following the incident. Commenting that her ambition is to continue studying sports therapy before progressing to Glasgow Caledonian University to study physiotherapy.

via Unsplash

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After the incident Rachel didn’t describe herself as a “hero”, she used that reflection to emphasise the importance of first-aid training to the masses. This allows citizens to step up to such a daunting task feeling confident in their skills, which ultimately saves lives.  “It shows how important first aid training is,” she commented. “Even basic knowledge can make a difference.”

She further credited Glasgow City College’s curriculum for preparing students for such high pressure scenarios. The college’s sports therapy department conducts rigorous practice, allowing students to practice chest compressions as well as use defibrators in an effort to simulate real emergency situations. In particular, Rachel credited Liam Smyth, and the general teaching staff for instilling the importance of staying calm in such situations. “CPR is something the lecturers really care about because they know how important it is,” she commented.

Rachel believes that mortality rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests would fall drastically if people received first-aid training and were confident within it. “If you’ve done your training, trust it,” she commented. “And if you haven’t, learn it. It doesn’t take long, and one day it could help save somebody’s life.” She also took time to emphasise the importance of defibrators being accessible in the public for such situations. Currently, they are only used on a minority of cases, although they have been proven to increase the chances of survival in cardiac arrests. “Defibrillators save lives,” Rachel commented “They’re absolutely worth having.”

The main message that Rachel hopes to emphasise is that helping in emergency situations is not about proving heroism, but is merely stepping up and being confident enough to act when someone is in need.

Featured Image via Unsplash