by Rachel Ramsey

On Wednesday, November 2, Peg Decker of Dwight met with Dustin Campbell and Dawn McGrath of Dwight EMS to show her gratitude and give them recognition for how great they are at their job.

On September 6 Decker called 9-1-1 because she was experiencing chest pains and shortness of breath. Dwight EMS arrived on the scene.

During the transit, Decker’s heart began beating rapidly and her heart stopped as they pulled onto Waupansie Street. Campbell, who was driving at the time, pulled over at the “old hot dog stand” in Dwight and jumped to the back of the ambulance to assist McGrath.

They began CPR on Decker and used a defibrillator to get her pulse back up. During this time, Stuart Holliday was called in to drive the ambulance.

On the drive to the nearest cardiac cath lab at Morris Hospital, the Dwight EMS called ahead to let the hospital staff know they were coming, allowing the staff to prepare for the patient.

Decker received an angioplasty at Morris Hospi-tal to clear the blockage in her heart. One of her six stents was replaced by Dr. Ari de la Hera and she was sent home in under a week.

On November 2 Decker was able to sit down and speak with the two paramedics who saved her life.

Campbell and McGrath explained the entire event to her, going into detail about how they started her heart back up and filling in the moments that she couldn’t distinctly recall.

“The last thing I remembered hearing was you [pointing at Campbell] saying that you don’t allow people to die in your ambulance,” Decker chuckled as she squeezed his arm.

While they were ex-changing stories, Decker explained why she wanted to recognize the great work Dwight EMS was doing. “I was a teacher for 31 years and the most rewarding thing was to have a student stop me to say hi and say a phrase that I’m known for.”

McGrath nodded, “I think it’s the same for us. This is very rewarding for us; to get to see you again and hear your appreciation.”

For their work on September 6, Campbell, McGrath and Holliday were all awarded a certificate for Service Excellence from Kevin Bernard, Manager of Emergency Management and Emergency Medical Services at Morris Hospital on behalf of Morris Hospital.

“We know just exactly what they did in the back of that ambulance. It was done to perfection,” stated Bernard.