The incident occurred when a member of the housekeeping team noticed a gentleman sat in his car with his leg hanging out and appearing unable to move. When she moved closer she found that he was clutching his chest and crying saying that he needed help.
A response team consisting of a general nurse, ward manager, clinical team leaders and a support worker were alerted and were quickly on the scene and an ambulance was called.
The gentleman was a member of the public called Simon who was driving to work when he took ill and saw the sign for a hospital. Fearing he was having a heart attack, he pulled up the drive and tried to get out of the car.
The team at Wyke responded quickly and efficiently, treating Simon for a suspected heart attack and keeping him as calm as they could until the emergency response ambulance arrived and took over. In the background, non-clinical staff located personal items in the car for Simon to take with him and moved his car to a secure location in the grounds.
The gentleman was taken to the local Accident and Emergency Department for further investigation and requested that staff contact his place of work to let them know the situation. The HR team from Simon’s place of work called back the following day to pass on their deepest personal thanks to all the staff involved in helping their friend and colleague in such a time of need.
Thankfully Simon soon recovered and was released from general hospital. He later returned to Cygnet Hospital Wyke with boxes of chocolates and a thank you card for all the staff involved. Simon said that he could not express his gratitude enough and was overwhelmed with the care and support he had received from staff, adding “you saved my life”.