Scary and surreal - take a moment to check your athlete

While at Carpenter Park on Saturday evening, watching the son of a family friend play, we watched in shock as a player collapsed on an adjacent field. No contact, no collision, he just went down. No pulse, wasn't breathing. A parent started CPR immediately. Two of the people in our group happened to be nurses at the Heart Hospital in Plano and rushed over to assist. When paramedics arrived, they used a defib unit to get his heart beating again. They loaded up and took him to the hospital. We have heard that he is stable and doing OK at this point, though I cannot confirm concretely (I hope he is). The player looked to be an older boy, maybe 15-16 (again, only basing this on what I could tell from a distance). It wasn't until Saturday night that I heard of Living4Zachary.org. This is a program offered through Baylor Health Systems at 3 locations in DFW. They offer a heart screening (electrocardiogram, echocardiogram and blood pressure) for $100. IMHO, something that I will GLADLY pay to make sure there are no underlying or unknown issues with my daughter.

We all are competitive, kids, parents and coaches. But at the end of the day, win or lose, life will go on. I encourage everyone to use this opportunity to get a screening for your daughter/son and be certain that there isn't something hidden that can cause such a traumatic event.

www.living4zachary.org

Wow that is scary! Thank you for sharing.

That is scary news, I hope he is doing better. My wife & I will take a look at Living4Zachary; thank you for the information.

On a side note/question: Did the trainers at PYSA not have a defib on site? I know that LH does which is why I asked.

I really don't know - to be honest it never crossed my mind if they have a defib unit or not. I would think it would take specialized training/knowledge to use it in an emergency situation. If not used correctly could be very dangerous. Pass the word along - I wouldn't even mind if our club/team started making it a requirement before each season.

A parent on my team is the VP of Operations for Baylor Heart Hospital and a good friend is the CNO. The Living for Zachary Organization is fantastic. I've attended their Gala the past couple years and can completely vouch for the great work they are doing. I would highly recommend checking it out. As parents we never know when it can be one of our own.

A yearly physical with EKG and a heart sonogram in my opinion is a must. Athletes need to be checked regularly by their physicians. these are just preventive measures and give no guarantee.

http://planoblog.dallasnews.com/2014/09/bystanders-performed-cpr-saved-teen-who-collapsed-on-soccer-field.html/

Great Job everyone that was there!!

A 16-year-old boy who collapsed while playing soccer in Plano on Saturday night is alive thanks to several bystanders who performed CPR until paramedics arrived, Plano Fire-Rescue officials said Monday.

Thank you for sharing this. Glad to hear it was a happy ending and yes something to look into, www.living4zachary.org, winning and competivenss set aside, this is brings life back into perspective.

loveofthegame wrote:I really don't know - to be honest it never crossed my mind if they have a defib unit or not. I would think it would take specialized training/knowledge to use it in an emergency situation. If not used correctly could be very dangerous. Pass the word along - I wouldn't even mind if our club/team started making it a requirement before each season.

Just an FYI, an AED is not hard to use and shouldn't make anyone nervous to use it. If there is one around, open it, turn it on and it will give you verbal directions and diagrams of how to use it. It saves lives. No special knowledge needed. I promise!

Jackhandy wrote:

loveofthegame wrote:I really don't know - to be honest it never crossed my mind if they have a defib unit or not. I would think it would take specialized training/knowledge to use it in an emergency situation. If not used correctly could be very dangerous. Pass the word along - I wouldn't even mind if our club/team started making it a requirement before each season.

Just an FYI, an AED is not hard to use and shouldn't make anyone nervous to use it.  If there is one around, open it, turn it on and it will give you verbal directions and diagrams of how to use it. It saves lives. No special knowledge needed. I promise!

Good info to have! Let's hope I don't ever have to put it to the test!

Jackhandy wrote:

loveofthegame wrote:I really don't know - to be honest it never crossed my mind if they have a defib unit or not. I would think it would take specialized training/knowledge to use it in an emergency situation. If not used correctly could be very dangerous. Pass the word along - I wouldn't even mind if our club/team started making it a requirement before each season.

Just an FYI, an AED is not hard to use and shouldn't make anyone nervous to use it.  If there is one around, open it, turn it on and it will give you verbal directions and diagrams of how to use it. It saves lives. No special knowledge needed. I promise!

Yes and it will not let you hurt anyone. It has a number of safeties built in. Don't be afraid to try and help.