GLEN BURNIE — Hospital beds are no place for a reunion, but one Maryland man was thankful to see a familiar face after he finally woke up from the brink of death.
On Superbowl Sunday, Chris Presley, a registered nurse from Odenton, had a heart attack known as "sudden cardiac death." It has no warning signs, and Chris says he felt "great" just before it happened. Luckily though, his family didn't miss a beat when he suddenly collapsed in the kitchen that day.
His wife, who is also a nurse, immediately started CPR with the help of their oldest daughter. Meanwhile, their other daughter called 911 and before long EMS was there with a AED. They were able to shock Chris's heart back into rhythm as they they transported him to University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center.
Chris says the next he remembers after collapsing... is waking up to the familiar face of one of the doctors he used to work with, telling him he had a heart attack but he was safe now.
Chris worked at UM BWMC for 18 years in the ER. He says he always knew his colleagues were special, and wouldn't have wanted to be in anyone else's care.
I've worked with Anne Arundel County EMS for years especially working here in the ER, and I've always said that they're the best. And they just showed me when I was at my worst just how good they are. I'm here to enjoy my wife and my daughters because of them.
The experience goes both ways too. The team that saved his life say the situation is just as special for them. Their patient relationship is usually too brief to see the long-term good they do, but when they know the patient...
This doesn't come along very often, maybe once or twice in a career. Its wonderful not to just know he did ok by following the hospital records, but to actually see him and his family back to their life... its why were all here and why we do what we do.
Chris's entire healthcare team encourages everyone to learn CPR and says his family's CPR skills are the only reason he survived.
