(Posted 7:30 a.m., April 26)
Off-duty paramedic saves man's life at
R.J. Kennedy Arena
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online

Talk about being in the right place at the right time. Ottawa paramedic Roch Leduc was at the R.J. Kennedy Arena early Saturday morning waiting for his wife to arrive when an incident happened requiring all of his training and skill.

Leduc was watching a pick-up ball hockey game to pass the time away when one of players suddenly collapsed on the playing surface.

As it became obvious the player was unconscious, Leduc sprang into action. He ran onto the playing surface and checked the man's vital signs. When he was unable to find a pulse, he immediately started performing CPR on the man. In the meantime, one of the other players went to find the rink attendant who grabbed the arena's defibrillator and brought it to Leduc.

When the patient didn't respond to CPR, Leduc placed the defibrillate pads on the man's chest and delivered the first jolt. He kept doing chest compressions for about a minute when the defibrillate automatically delivered a second shock.

After a few more chest compression, the patient finally started showing signs of life. He blinked his eyes a few time and started groaning. Leduc checked the man's pulse, which was fine, and his breathing was relatively normal considering he had just been brought back from the brink of death.

For Leduc, it was all in the line of duty, even though he was off-duty. Having the opportunity to save a life is something he trains for every day.

(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)

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