Kildare Cyclist resuscitated with HeartSafety Defibrillator

On Sunday the 9th of April 2017, Kildare man Garret Fallon was out for a cycle with his brother-in-law David when he suddenly came off his bike at the church in Eadestown.

It soon became apparent to his brother-in-law that Garret was in Cardiac Arrest, so he called for help and started CPR. Luckily for Garret, Mags Reen and Denise Tierney had just finished GAA training at the nearby GAA grounds and they knew there was an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) located there, since the club availed of the GAA National Defibrillator scheme a few ago. They ran back to the clubhouse, retrieved the AED and returned to Garret. Both girls were trained in CPR and using the AED so they assisted David and attached and used the defibrillator.

Garret required just one life-saving shock from the defibrillator before nearby Blessington First Responders and the National Ambulance Service arrived and continued care. Garret stayed in hospital for a couple of weeks where, thankfully consultants couldn’t find anything wrong with his heart. ‘The quick intervention of David, Denise and Mags were crucial to my survival and rapid recovery’ Garret said. He hasn’t been back out on the bike just yet, but he plans on returning to cycling within the next week or two.

On Saturday, Garret donated a defibrillator he received from HeartSafety Solutions as part of their ‘Forward Heart’s programme, to the church in Eadestown. Former soccer star and Eadestown GAA Ladies Senior coach Niall Quinn was on hand to receive the defibrillator on behalf of the local church. ‘We’re very proud of the two girls, they did great work that day’ Niall said. Sudden Cardiac Arrest occurs when a person’s heart stops suddenly and is responsible for around 5,000 deaths in Ireland every year. It can happen at any time and any place.

Prompt action is crucial ad for every minute that CPR and Defibrillation is delayed, the persons chance of survival is reduced by up to 10%. Our Forwards Hearts programme sees the survivor of Sudden Cardiac Arrest, resuscitated by our defibrillators, receive a free defibrillator to donate forward to an organisation of their choice.