Sophie Loughran came home to visit her family in Stannard, VT. Although she did not plan to save her father’s life, she was prepared with Hands-Only CPR and a refurbished automated external defibrillator (AED).
Written by Sophie Loughran
After recently moving to Denver, Colorado, and feeling a bit homesick, I traveled home to my family’s Christmas Tree Farm in Stannard, Vermont, on October 7th for a quick visit. I wanted to see my family and the Northern Lights that were visible there. I did not expect to save my father’s life that day.
At 4 a.m., I woke to the sound of my mother screaming for me. I ran to her and found my father unresponsive, experiencing cardiac arrest. As a cardiac ICU nurse, I knew what needed to be done, but seeing my dad fight for his life was overwhelming.
Living in a rural area, we knew it could take some time for emergency medical services (EMS) to arrive, and we had no time to waste. My mom had already called 911, so we immediately began CPR and remembered the refurbished AED we had in our mudroom. It had seemed like something we would never use when we bought it as an extra precaution after my father’s coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery 7 months earlier. But at that moment, it became a lifeline.
Once my mom brought the AED, she began compressions while I applied the machine. Since CPR can be a tiring task, my mom went to get our farmhands, two young men who live and work on our farm. When they arrived, we rotated performing CPR and using the AED. After three shocks, my father was still unresponsive.
When EMS arrived about 30 minutes later, they detected a faint pulse. They loaded him into the ambulance, and he was at the hospital another 30 minutes later.
My mom and I met my dad at the hospital with no idea what to expect. It was the longest 30-minute drive of our lives. Once we got there, we were led back to see him, and he calmed down just by having us around. He had not regained his eyesight yet and had significant amnesia. For the 24 hours following his cardiac arrest, he had short-term memory loss that slowly returned along with his eyesight. He later received an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD).
Just in time for the holidays, my dad was able to come home and make a full recovery. He even harvested the Christmas trees on the farm early and came with me on a road trip to my new home in Denver! I cannot stop thinking about how close we were to losing him – and how different the outcome might have been if we hadn’t purchased the AED, if I wasn’t there, or if my mom and I didn’t know how to act quickly and correctly.
This experience reinforced the life-saving powers our preparation and AED had. If we had not shocked him with our AED before EMS arrived, my father may not have survived. His survival wasn’t luck – it was the result of knowing to act and having the resources to use. Unfortunately, many families and organizations lack this level of preparedness.
That’s why I’m working with the American Heart Association, advocating for every school in Vermont to have an AED and a Cardiac Emergency Response Plan (CERP).
Over 350,000 cardiac arrests happen outside of a hospital in the U.S. each year, 23,000 of those affecting children. Yet the survival rate is only 10%, meaning over 300,000 people die each year from cardiac arrest. Immediate CPR and AED use can double or even triple the chances of survival, but the reality is that most people do not feel prepared to take action during a cardiac emergency. These statistics are more than just numbers – they are a call to action.
The best gift I received this year was my dad’s survival. Now we get to celebrate more holidays, share more laughter, and create more memories. I want to give every family that opportunity by ensuring they have the knowledge and tools to act in an emergency.
If our family was able to save my dad with a refurbished AED and Hands-Only CPR, think about how many lives could be saved if every school and athletic facility were equipped and prepared. The investment is small compared to the value of a life, whether it is a child, parent, teacher, coach or staff member.
In Vermont, over 200 schools have AEDs, but our goal is for every school to have an AED and a comprehensive plan in place. CERPs ensure that staff and students know how to respond quickly to a cardiac emergency by taking steps like calling 911, performing CPR, and using an AED. If we are able to prepare staff and students at school, that knowledge will stay with them as they leave school each day and enter into their home, their communities and throughout their future. By advocating for CERPs in Vermont schools, we’re giving our communities the tools to save lives. I urge Vermont lawmakers to make this issue a priority. Let’s ensure every school has the resources needed when every second counts. Together we can save lives from cardiac arrest.
Sophie Loughran, Stannard, VT
If you would like to show your support for cardiac emergency response plans in schools, text “SMART” to 46839 or visit our action page.
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