22 November 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — After a visitor to the Dole VA Medical Center in Wichita found a man unresponsive in the parking lot, a veteran will get to spend another holiday with his family.
A news release from the Dole VA Medical Center says on Friday, Nov. 17, Cathy Tullis pulled up to the hospital when she noticed a person lying face down near the parking lot.
She jumped out of her car to check on the man and found him unresponsive. Immediately, she notified a staff member.
Kristine Davis, Transportation Assistant, was that employee. Davis asked her co-worker to call the VA Police Department and then immediately went outside with Tullis to assess the situation.
“When we got to the gentleman, he was still lying face down,” said Davis in the news release. “A couple nurses from our Quality Management department happened to see us and came to help.”
The unresponsive man was turned on his back, and those tending to him found he wasn’t breathing and had no pulse. They began CPR and chest compressions and continued until the hospital’s rapid response team arrived.
A short time later, the man responded with a pulse and began breathing again.
Sedgwick County EMS and the Wichita Fire Department responded and helped move the man into the Dole VA emergency room, where he was further stabilized before being transferred to another facility.
Emergency room staff noted the man was awake and talking prior to the transfer, “a good sign after having gone through cardiac arrest.”
“We are very proud of the heroic actions taken by our staff last week,” said Medical Center Director Michael Payne in the news release. “We get high marks and ratings for the care we provide to our Veterans, but nothing says ‘we care’ like rushing into the parking lot to save a person’s life.”