Quick action, training save life of museum visitor

Published Sept. 23, 2010
By Rob Bardua
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Public Affairs

DAYTON, Ohio -- He must have been "at the right place at the right time."

That familiar expression definitely proved true for an Illinois man who was making a visit to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Sept. 19.

Shortly after arriving, he collapsed at the entrance to the gift shop and did not have a pulse.

As museum volunteers and staff summoned the paramedics and closed off the area, an Air Force Museum Foundation gift shop employee, who also happened to be a retired Air Force nurse, Ann Uhlenhake and two unknown visitors immediately began to administer CPR.

Ms. Uhlenhake performed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, while the two other visitors did chest compressions.

An Automated External Defibrillator, or AED, which is a specialized medical device designed to recognize and treat certain lethal heart rhythms in the setting of a cardiac arrest, was retrieved and after employing a second electrical shock to the man's heart, his pulse returned and he began breathing again.

Paramedics from the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base fire department and medical center arrived and took over the scene. Shortly thereafter, the now-alert victim was transported to a local hospital for further treatment.

Only a matter of minutes had gone by before the paramedics arrived, but the quick actions of Ms. Uhlenhake, the unknown visitors, and museum volunteers and staff may have made all of the difference in the world.

Although some might see Ms. Uhlenhake as a hero, she doesn't quite see herself that way.

"I just really wanted him to live and there was great teamwork and communication by everyone involved," she said. "No one knew how it was going to turn out. The whole time I kept praying, 'Lord, please let him live,' and it was amazing to see him finally respond."

According to National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Director, retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Charles D. Metcalf, training and preparation are the key.

"We constantly train for these types of situations at the museum because with 1.3 million visitors, you never know when a medical emergency is going to occur," said General Metcalf. "I highly recommend that everyone learn how to administer CPR and keep their certification current."