Newbury carpenter hailed a hero for saving man's life

Paramedics praise man who performed CPR

A CARPENTER from Newbury is being hailed as a hero after his quick-thinking actions saved the life of a man who suffered a cardiac arrest.

Nick Lambden was driving along Hambridge Road last Monday morning when he spotted a man lying on the floor.

While he waited for paramedics to arrive, Mr Lambden started performing CPR.

Speaking to the Newbury Weekly News, Mr Lambden said: “I think he had just gone down.

“I got a pillow from the back of the van and placed it under his head.

“All I could see was this chap laying out on the grass with one shoe off and his friend standing over him calling his name.

“I was hoping he would come round, but obviously it was more severe.

“We were trying to talk to him and the control people were asking his friend about the medical history.

“They got me to squeeze his hand, but there was no reaction.

“The control said ‘it’s time to do CPR’. I had been rubbing his chest, I’m not sure what I thought that would do.

“I had never done CPR on a human before. It’s all a bit of a blur – I remember thinking ‘I don’t know what I’m doing’. ”

Paramedics used a defibrillator on the unnamed victim, a 62-year-old man, at the scene and by the time the air ambulance arrived, his heart was circulating normally.

He was subsequently placed in an induced coma, but has since come round and is recovering.

Hannah Pugh, one of the paramedics who arrived on the scene, said: “The pillow was perfect as it kept his airways clear.”

Addressing Mr Lambden, she added: “When we arrived you were doing such a good job. We checked you were ok to carry on. It was admirable what you were doing.

“We left you to it, which freed us up to get on with treating the patient.”

Mr Lambden had undertaken a first aid course owing to his connection with AFC Newbury.

He said: “I did it, but you never think you will need it or have the confidence to do anything with it.”

Media and communications manager for the South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, David Gallagher, said: “It’s a great example of how getting more people trained in CPR can make a life-saving difference.”

The first response team who attended the scene thanked Mr Lambden in person on Thursday at Newbury Ambulance station.

Miss Pugh said: “We believe that he did such a good job that he definitely helped save the gentleman’s life.”

She added: “It was a very brave thing to do and we think you deserve to be recognised for the amazing thing you did.”

Only 11 per cent of people who suffer a cardiac arrest outside of a hospital environment survive, and Miss Pugh said: “For every minute where CPR or defibrillation is not done for someone in cardiac arrest, there is a 10-per-cent reduction in survival rate.”