Methodist Healthcare System | Keeping Well | Summer 2019

You don’t need to know how to perform mouth-to-mouth cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to save the life of someone in cardiac arrest. You can use hands-only CPR. Hands-only CPR consists of just two steps: 1. Call 911 if you see a teen or an adult collapse and they’re not responsive when you ask them if they’re OK. 2. Push hard and fast in the center of the person’s chest. Use the beat of the disco classic “Stayin’ Alive” to guide your compressions. No mouth-to-mouth breath- ing is required. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the vast majority of cardiac arrests take place at home or in a nonhospital public place. Most people who haven’t learned CPR feel helpless to act in that situa- tion. Yet when a person has a cardiac arrest, their sur- vival depends on how quickly someone performs CPR. That’s where hands-only CPR comes in. It has been shown to be as effective as full CPR during the first few minutes of a cardiac arrest. To watch a demonstration video of hands-only CPR in action, visit the AHA at heart.org/handsonlycpr . Jacob Colunga (L) poses with Jose Alvarado (R) at Methodist Hospital. Colunga administered hands-only CPR on Alvarado that helped save his life. How important is hands-only CPR? A San Antonio man died and was brought back to life by a stranger with hands-only CPR. When Jose Alvarado’s heart stopped for 45 minutes, doctors at Methodist Hospital said he was essentially Methodist Children’s Hospital recently held a kickoff event for Shaving Lives 2019. Physicians, nurses and families of cancer patients had their heads shaved to show their support. Shaving Lives 2019 is organized by the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a volunteer-powered char- ity that funds more research grants for childhood cancer than any other organization except the U.S. government. Lillie Lew, a courageous 9-year-old who is not a cancer patient, inspired others by having her head shaved. “I know that people go through this a lot, and I just wanted to be a part of it,” she said. Lillie said hair doesn’t matter to her because beauty is on the inside. Lillie has learned about cancer treatment through her parents, who both work at Methodist Hospital. Lillie raised more than $850, and the kick-off event raised more than $11,000. The annual head shaving event raises funds and aware- ness and shows kids who lost their hair during cancer treatment that the community supports them, bringing hope to them and their families. BYSTANDER HANDS-ONLY CPR SAVES MAN’S LIFE dead. Luckily, Jacob Colunga was there to bring him back with hands-only CPR. Colunga was in Alvarado’s home on the West Side of San Antonio to get his taxes done by Alvarado’s wife, who is a tax preparer. They had never met before, and Colunga had never performed CPR before. “It was a life-changing experience, because performing CPR on dummies versus a real person is totally different,” said Colunga. His quick response with hands-only CPR kept Alvarado alive until emergency crews arrived and took Alvarado to the emergency room at Methodist Hospital. When EMS arrived, they continued CPR, never giving up on Alvarado, until the team arrived at the hospital—a true example of lifesaving teamwork among a community bystander, EMS and the hospital. “The fact that he’s able to go from completely dead, no pulse at all for 45 minutes, to being able to walk out of the hospital, is because of the CPR,” said Jeffrey Dellavolpe, M.D. , critical care specialist at Methodist Hospital. “I was scared. I was thinking that this can’t be happen- ing. That’s when Jacob rushed in and did what he did,” said Lydia Chandler, Alvarado’s wife. Alvarado now has three stents in his heart and is doing fine. Colunga received CPR training at his job contracting with the Department of Defense. “In the future, if I ever have to administer CPR again, I know that the method that I use and how I was trained is the correct way,” Colunga said. “Bystander CPR is everything. We get called all the time for patients that have been found down for two or three or five minutes. Their brain isn’t getting oxygen and without oxygen they don’t get a chance to have a mean- ingful recovery,” Dr. Dellavolpe said. The public can learn how to save a life as well. The American Heart Association has free CPR training in our area. SHAVING HEADS SAVES LIVES Hands-only CPR: Why you should consider doing it Lillie Lew, with her dad, Bennet Lew, inspired many during the Shaving Lives event. S U M M E R 2 0 1 9 3 K E E P I N G W E L L M e t h o d i s t H e a l t h c a r e