An Illinois doctor vacationing at Walt Disney World was in the right place at the right time to save the life of a 17-year-old girl.
Doctor Saves Teenager at Disney World
NBC 5 Chicago reports that Dr. Jeffery Schiappa was visiting Walt Disney World with his grandchildren when he saw the unresponsive teenager. The article does not include details of exactly when or where the incident happened.
“These little girls were over there, they looked like high schoolers, and they were crying,” said Dr. Schiappa. “And I didn’t know what was happening and then I see this girl on the ground and she wasn’t responsive at that time.”
Schiappa is a family medicine doctor at Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox, a suburb of Chicago, and Premier Suburban Medical Group. He and his son worked quickly to revive the girl, keeping her alive until the paramedics reached her.
“My son ran and grabbed an AED,” Dr. Schiappa told NBC, “we put the paddles on her… and went ahead and shocked her.”
Schiappa and his son ended up shocking her heart twice with the Automated External Defibrillator. He later learned that she coded two more times on the way to the hospital.
“She was taken to the hospital and was diagnosed with a Long QT Interval, which is a prolonged heartbeat which is predisposed to having irregular beats and sudden death,” he explained. “This young person would have not made it if we didn’t come in at that point. She may have gone off to college and never known.”
The girl now has a pacemaker. Her family sent a thank you note Dr. Schiappa, who said, “It made me feel like I was in the right place at the right time and able to help and save this young girl.”
Schiappa noted there are AEDs accessible to guests throughout the Disney Parks and everyone should feel comfortable using them, even if they don’t have a medical background.
“Anybody could have used that AED and they have them everywhere. It’s such a good thing to have, because as soon as you put it on, it tells you if they have an irregular beat,” he explained. “The machine and all of that comes with the pads and it tells you where to place them on a chest. You just have to be brave enough to use it.”
Walt Disney World has information about AEDs on their website and in the My Disney Experience app, including a map of where they can be found in the parks. They all have the same red text on them and relay verbal instructions. As Disney notes, they can be used by any Cast Member or guest without training or certification. All Disney AEDs are suitable for use on adults and children.
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