Heart attack survivor’s wife saves man who collapses at gym

When a stranger collapsed on the treadmill at her gym, Natalie Troughton swung into action.

An automatic-external defibrillator has saved the life of her husband, Chris, an amazing four times, so Natalie knew just what she had to do — and quickly — at the Hazeldean Road GoodLife on Friday morning.

Natalie, 51, had just come out of her spin class when she saw the young, fit-looking man on the ground, she said Sunday. As panic erupted, she made sure staff had called 911 then called for the gym’s AED. She began chest compressions when a “lovely lady” who turned out to be a nurse arrived to help.

The nurse took over the compressions while Natalie connected the AED. She’d never done it before so she was grateful that the device “talked her through” what to do, she said, first alerting her to reposition the pads, then warning rescuers to stand back while it evaluated whether the man needed resuscitation.

The device ultimately delivered a shock that raised him from the floor.

Soon, he was breathing again, though still unconscious, and paramedics arrived to take him to hospital. Later in the day, they tweeted kudos for bystanders for helping save the life of the man, who is in his 40s.

“He is in critical condition but he is in the (Ottawa) Heart Institute and alive,” said Troughton, who was clearly shaken by seeing a person on the brink of death but grateful to have the training and equipment she needed to help.

Now she’s telling the story to inspire others to be ready to save a life.

“You take training and think, ‘I don’t think I can do that,’ ” Troughton said. “I did it.”

The episode took her back to December 2010 when Chris had a massive heart attack after playing hockey. Their family was at his bedside, holding him and praying he’d recover — likely just as the stranger’s loved ones were doing later that day.

“He has a family and it’s Christmastime,” Natalie said she was thinking as she tended to the stranger. “I hope he’s strong enough to make it.”

Chris Troughton thought about getting an AED for their Carronbridge Circle home, but after meeting Action First Aid’s Roger Hennig he decided to place one in a weatherproof cabinet outside his house so it could be shared with his entire neighbourhood, including a nearby outdoor rink.

A sudden cardiac arrest happens in Canada every 13 minutes, on average, Action First Aid defibrillator specialist Carly Jackson, told the Citizen earlier this month. But the survival rate is more than 75 per cent when an AED is used within 10 minutes.

When Chris Troughton unveiled the Save Station last month — he was only the fourth person in Canada to install an AED on his property for public use and aims to raise $2,825 toward the cost — he and Natalie underwent refresher first aid training.

“She is my hero,” Troughton said. “She was always my hero but man oh man, she jumped in and took control of a really scary situation and other people jumped in to help.”

While they don’t know the outcome, his wife’s experience shows the just how powerful the easy-touse machines are in the hands of someone who wants to help. It drives him to keep advocating for them.

“It’s important just to share the human side of the story,” Troughton said. “I don’t know if it’s karma or what it is that this fell on my wife. Sometimes things do happen for a reason.

“This kind of stuff keeps me going.”

He has a family and it’s Christmastime. I hope he’s strong enough to make it.