8 WOODTV.COM
by: Kyle Mitchell
VIDEO
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The holidays will be extra special this year for a five-year-old boy and his family after he suffered cardiac arrest at school in October.
It was a typical day on the playground at Palmer Elementary school in Grand Rapids before Muhqueed went into cardiac arrest. Now, Lameel Muhqueed’s family credits the fast actions of his school’s staff and the hospital for saving his life.
“We got a phone call that he had collapsed on the playground and he was unresponsive so then we rushed up, ran out the door,” said Laura Muhqueed, Lameel’s mother. “They were giving him CPR, had to shock him with the AED machine and then they were able to get a response within five minutes.”
Because he went into cardiac arrest at school, the adults around him were able to respond quickly and give him a better chance of survival.
“Every building has a medical emergency response team. We have a registered nurse assigned in every building and a designated CPR-trained team available. We run drills every year just for these types of situations,” said Kirstyn Wade, the director of health services for Grand Rapids Public Schools.
Lameel was rushed to the emergency department at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Oct. 30.
“He has a heart muscle that’s weakened. It does not squeeze like every other child’s heart squeezes and he has a rhythm abnormality that can put him at risk for sudden cardiac death or events like he had on the playground,” said Dr. Jean Ballweg, a pediatric cardiologist.
Dr. Ballweg says having a team ready to respond with an AED on site was crucial.
“The core training, the access to the defibrillator, the knowledge and the organization of a team that Lameel actually experienced was life-saving in his situation,” said Ballweg said.
The American Heart Association says CPR can double or triple someone’s chance of survival outside of a hospital if performed immediately during a cardiac arrest.
“They were so helpful,” said Laura Muhqueed. “They did amazing.”
If you want to learn more about CPR training, visit the American Heart Association website.
Lameel’s family launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for his treatment.
