St John Medical Director Dr. Tony Smith explains how to perform CPR and use an AED.
Video / St John
It was raining the afternoon Tanvir Bhamji bought his dad back to life.
The 70-year-old was in cardiac arrest in his Lynfield bedroom and 14km away St John call handler Jonathan Brown heard Tanvir yell in terror "it's not your time yet dad" as he performed CPR without any training.
Brown's heart broke for the 40-year-old on the end of the phone line - but he couldn't let his emotions show.
His job was to help Tanvir bring his dad Ahemad Bhamji back to life and keep him breathing until St John paramedics arrived on scene.
"We have to treat it as another call. We can't take it on and say this is horrendous, we have to stick to the facts and think how can we fix this."
For Tanvir "it was the longest eight minutes" of his life but, he says Brown's words gave him the comfort to stop his "stubborn, kind and fair" dad from dying.
"I was feeling fear and panic, like what do I do, what do I do but when I heard Jonathan at the other end all of that noise just fell away. I was listening to Jonathan and his instructions, that calmed me down."
Father and son have shared their story ahead of Restart a Heart Day this Friday which is aimed at raising awareness about the importance of first aid training in the hope of improving Kiwis' chances of surviving cardiac arrest.
It was a Sunday afternoon and Tanvir had just popped in to check up on his parents - and get a taste of his mum's home-made curry.
"Dad was in bed and I said 'what are you doing in bed it's only three in the afternoon'."
Ahemad said he was feeling tired so Tanvir left him to it but as he was walking down the stairs, he heard his dad gasp loudly for air- that was when their lives changed forever.
"I remember calling 'dad, dad' and he didn't respond so I went over to the bedside to check his airways. I also wanted to check he wasn't playing because he does like to play games but I realised it was serious."
Brave son Tavir Bhamji (40) tells of the fear that rushed through him as he fought to bring his dad Ahemad Bhamji (70) back to life. Photo / Alex Burton
Tanvir hadn't done any first aid or CPR training and said he "remembered the movies and tried to replicate that".
He dialled 911 - "which I didn't realise until later that night when I was looking through my phone, obviously I've been watching too many American shows" - but the call still went through.
That's when he was connected to Brown - a father of two girls, two years on the job.
"I told him dad was unconscious and not breathing and he took me through some steps - carry him down to the floor and start CPR etc," Tanvir said.
"I started CPR compressions, he told me to put my hands together, find a spot between the ribs and Jonathan was doing CPR with me at the other end, counting 1,2,3,4 and push."
Meanwhile, Brown kept reminding him help was on its way.
St John Emergency Call Handler Jonathan Brown received the call from Tanvir coded purple, which indicates a cardiac arrest has occurred. Photo / Alex Burton
Within minutes four men in green overalls came running out of the rain and up the stairs.
"They took over and were just so calm and assertive, it was amazing."
Ahemad doesn't remember anything between saying goodbye to his son in the bedroom and waking up at Auckland City Hospital.
Doctors discovered Ahemad had suffered a ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) which is the most life-threatening form of a heart attack, that affects five people every day in New Zealand.
He had surgery to repair a blockage of one of the heart's major arteries and help restore blood flow to the heart. The sooner blood flow is restored to the heart, the lower the risk of death and the less damage to the heart muscle, reducing the risk of heart failure and other complications.
"My perspective on life has always been to live for others and I'm still going to live like that," Ahemad said.
His chance of survival was 13 per cent.
The "cheeky dad" had been clinically dead for about eight minutes. He not only lived but also managed to keep his sense of humour and physical health still intact - "that is even more rare", Gareth Mason, St John Intensive Care Paramedic who was at the scene, told the Weekend Herald.
St John Intensive Care Paramedic, Gareth Mason was the first at the scene. Photo / Alex Burton
Mason dubbed Tanvir "player of the day" and Brown said he came off the call, turned to his colleagues and said "that was the perfect call".
Restart a Heart Day:
• A day to raise awareness about the importance of first aid training with the hope of improving New Zealanders' chances of surviving cardiac arrest.
• About 1600 people die from a cardiac arrest in New Zealand each year.
• The chance of surviving a cardiac arrest is 13 per cent and every minute that goes by without CPR or defibrillation that rate drops by 10 to 15 per cent.
• People over 18 who know how to perform CPR or use an automated external defibrillator can register with the GoodSAM app and be alerted to a cardiac arrest nearby.
• 111 ambulance communications centres receive more than 540,000 calls a year, and help treat almost 500,000 patients.
Brown and Mason meet the father they helped save Ahemad Bhamji (70) and the son they dubbed 'play of the day' Tanvir Bhamji (40). Photo / Alex Burton
