Public Spiritedness Award (PSA)
Singapore Civil Defense Force (SCDF) on November 8 awarded six Singaporeans and the team from SMRT with Public Spiritedness Award for saving a man's life on October 28, 2016.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) Public Spiritedness Award (PSA) was introduced in the early 1990s to acknowledge civic-minded acts by members of the public who stepped forward to save lives and/or property. Over the years, the PSA has proven to be a strategic means for the SCDF to promote community emergency preparedness and to encourage more members of the public to be actively involved at the onset of an emergency by stepping forward as community first responders prior to the SCDF’s arrival.
The incident
Displaying an amazing presence of mind six individuals including two nurses saved an Indian commuter who suffered cardiac arrest in a SMRT train. They performed CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation), hooked the person onto an AED (Automated External Defibrillator), managed to get a pulse and helped him to get to the hospital where he was saved.
Nursing student Xue Dan who was travelling in the MRT train on October 28 heard a loud thud from the next carriage as a man having fits fell on the floor. NUH's Senior Staff Nurse Nurhana Mohamad joined Xue and placed him on the side to place him on a recovery position. But he suddenly stopped moving and the nurses realised that the person had no pulse.
They immediately performed CPR on the person. Two students from National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine – Peter Daniel and Kevin Wui, both 21 also jumped in to help taking turns in performing CPR. Nurse Hazel Tan, 27 also joined and monitored the man's pulse.
Meanwhile, SMRT staff member Nurzanariah Zainudin, 29, stopped the train by pressing the emergency button and went to get the AED.
NUH's Dr Peng Kailing, 26, was at Buona Vista MRT, walking down the escalator for a train, when she saw the man who had been moved to the platform by then.
She helped monitor the man as the nurses used the AED ( Automated External Defibrillator) on him. It was only after the second (AED) shock that his pulse came back and he became conscious after that.
She then accompanied him in an ambulance to NUH where he was treated for cardiac arrest.
Statistics have shown that out of hospital cardiac arrest cases, in Singapore, it's only three to four percent that people survive.
Grateful survivor
Upon his release from the hospital, he thanked all the individuals who were involved in saving his life. Michael (not his real name), said, "To be trained with the necessary skills is not enough. To be able to apply them when the situation calls for it, that takes courage. These 6 bystanders turned responders did exactly that and in so doing saved my life. They are a credit to their cohort and organisations, and an example to all of us.
When I entered the train, I felt numbness in my left leg. After that, all I remember was waking up in the hospital. Although I was unconscious throughout, I would like to acknowledge with gratitude the care and concern and the swiftness in which SMRT and SCDF personnel responded in getting me to safety. My heartfelt thanks go out to all those who helped that morning.” he added.