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A man who beat the odds to survive a cardiac arrest has gone on to save the lives of at least three other people. And by backing the new London Heart Starters campaign, Steve Morris will help to save even more.
Analysis by the London Ambulance Service has revealed that dozens of neighbourhoods are ‘defibrillator deserts’ – where there is little or no access to a life saving device. Steve is now sharing his story in the hope it will inspire others to support London Heart Starters and fund more defibs for the capital.
Steve was a fit and active 60-year-old when he collapsed while on a treadmill at his gym. Staff at the gym gave him chest compressions and a shock from a defibrillator, keeping him alive until an ambulance crew arrived.
“I was slim and I’d never smoked. I was a regular gym-goer so this was the last thing I expected to happen to me.
“But if this had to happen, I was in the best place. The staff knew how to give effective chest compressions and use a defib, which saved my life. If I had been at home, I would be dead.”
Steve Morris.
Steve, now 69, was so grateful to be alive he just wanted to help others and started fundraising to help provide 17 more defibs for the West Sussex town where he now lives.
Two people’s lives have already been saved by one of the new defibs and, even more extraordinarily, Steve has himself given chest compressions and used his own defib to save someone’s life.
“A salesman gave me an old defib he had in his garage and one day I was at home and heard a commotion outside my flat. A man was lying on the pavement so I ran down, made sure 999 was called, took over chest compressions and shocked him and he came back to life.
“It was incredibly emotional and actually affected me more than my own cardiac arrest. It really brought it home how close I was to dying.”
Steve Morris.
As well as backing the London Heart Starters campaign and the sponsored London Life Hike walk that will raise funds for vital defibs, Steve has also joined the project board of London Lifesavers, bringing his expertise and experience to another ambitious campaign.
The London Ambulance Service campaign is aiming to make London a city of lifesavers by organising training in life-saving skills for schools, organisations and communities.
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