In mid-January, Leah Cusson of Martensville awoke in the middle of the night to find her 39-year-old husband, Steven, lying unconscious on the floor in their room. He had suffered a serious cardiac arrest.
A few seconds after being awoken by his mother, and seeing his father not breathing, sixteen-year-old Jarren Cusson immediately began applying cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). He kept up a steady series of chest compressions until a team of Medavie West paramedics arrived four minutes later from the ambulance company’s newly-built base in Martensville.
The paramedics used an automated external defibrillator (AED) to get Steven’s heart beating, and rushed him in to hospital in Saskatoon for emergency surgery.
One month later, with his now fully-recovered father, his mother and his younger brother proudly watching, Jarren Cusson was awarded the ‘Chiefs Life Saving Award’ by Medavie Health Services West Chief Gerry Schriemer as part of the official grand opening ceremony for the Martensville ambulance base on Thursday, February 16.
Medavie Director of Public Affairs Troy Davies said Jarren’s calm, quick response at a time of crisis was a key reason why Steven Cusson is alive and well today.
“In a cardiac arrest situation, every second counts,” said Davies, who also oversees the Saskatoon Heart Safe Program. “For every minute that passes, you lose a 10 per cent chance of survival. The team of paramedics arrived on the scene within four minutes, and that includes the time involved in phoning 911 and directing the call to the base.”
Leah Cusson said she is very proud of her son, and also expressed sincere thanks to the four paramedics who helped save her husband’s life.
“There aren’t enough thank-you’s in the world to show our appreciation for what you have done for our family,” said Leah in reference to the paramedics. “And as for Jarren, I remember when he was about 12 years old, and I was tucking him into bed one night and he said, ‘Mom, I want to be remembered for doing something really special with my life.’ And I knew that was something really important, that was a moment that I needed to remember.
“And today, Jarren, you got your wish. You are remembered for doing something really important in your life, and everyone is so proud of you.”
Jarren Cusson, an active member of the Martensville Air Cadet squadron whose dream is to be a fighter pilot, said he learned CPR when he was earning his lifeguard certification at age 12.
When he saw his father lying unconscious on that cold January night, he just instinctively decided to try CPR.
“He was passed out on the floor and I knew I had to do something,” said Jarren. “To do nothing is the worst thing you can do. So I did CPR and it turned out it was the right thing.
“Panic never crossed my mind.”
Steven Cusson said he had no history of heart problems prior to his cardiac arrest.
“I’m 39,” he said. “I eat well, I work out regularly. It came out of nowhere.”
Steven said he’s talked to nurses and doctors who have told him his rapid recovery is “one in a million.”
“I walked out of the hospital after 11 days,” he said. “My understanding is that 70 per cent of the people that end up on that floor never leave.”
He now has an ICD defibrillator built into his chest that monitors his heart activity.
“If it senses something wrong, it will automatically send 700 volts to my chest,” he said. “The doctors described it like a horse kicking me in the chest. I’m not looking forward to that.”
Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) Director of EMS for Central Saskatchewan Krista Remeshylo said Jarren’s actions were very brave.
“A lot of people run the other way or shut down when emergencies happen,” said Remeshylo. “You rallied and acted and that made a difference in the outcome for your father. When you’re ready to come to EMS, the SHA would love to see you as a paramedic in the future.”
Martensville Mayor Kent Muench also praised Jarren’s actions, and noted that the incident illustrates how the new ambulance base in Martensville will benefit the area. The base has been in operation since early December, and prior to that Medavie paramedics utilized space at the Martensville Fire Hall for several months.
Schriemer said Medavie ambulance paramedics responded to 26 calls to Martensville and 39 calls to Warman in January, 2023.
“It’s a very busy area,” said Schriemer. “As the population grows, the number of calls increases.”
He noted that in the long-term, the ambulance company would like to set up another base in Warman.
Schriemer said the paramedic crews are not always present at the facility.
“We have a dynamic deployment program, where we cover high priority calls first,” said Schriemer. “During peak times, we have 15 transport ambulances on the road. When the fourth one is clear, it comes here to Martensville.
“In the case of the cardiac arrest here in Martensville, that was in the middle of the night, and there was a crew here at the facility, which really helped with response time.”
Schriemer said people should call 911 in an emergency rather than expect to find paramedics at the ambulance base in Martensville. He noted, however, that an all-weather outdoor phone directly linked to Medavie’s dispatch centre will be installed outside the main overhead doors of the ambulance base by the end of February.
“We will have signage to let people know the phone is there for emergencies,” said Schriemer.