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Reluctant CPR Student Saves Trainer’s Life
Jay Foley, Special to RedCross.org
Friday, August 18, 2006 — PELHAM, N.H. — “Mrs. Campbell collapsed!” was the cry of two people who ran up to Judy Metz in Pelham High School last fall. Metz, Athletic Director at the high school in Pelham, N.H., arrived on the scene to find the school nurse Barbara Campbell lying lifeless on the floor. Metz began administering CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), and it was her CPR skills that kept Campbell alive until help could arrive, saving her life.
When Barbara Campbell (left), an American Red Cross-certified CPR trainer, convinced her Pelham High School colleague Judy Metz (right) to learn CPR, she probably never imagined she’d be the beneficiary of those lifesaving skills.
(Photo Credit: American Red Cross)
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Barbara Campbell is not only the school nurse; she is an American Red Cross-certified CPR trainer, and Judy Metz was reluctant when Campbell initially approached her to learn CPR some years ago. As a CPR trainer, Campbell had always advocated for the school staff to become trained. Eventually, Metz relented, became certified and kept her skills current with annual training.
Campbell regained consciousness four days later to be told she had died and was brought back to life by her “reluctant student.”
“I thought: ‘I taught her how [to perform CPR] and she always said she hoped she never had to use it’,” said Campbell. “I was so humbled by the whole experience.”
“Knowing you saved someone’s life is very humbling,” Metz said when asked how the experience of saving the life of her CPR trainer changed her life. “To be honest, it lets you know just how fragile life is and that it is important to live every day to the fullest. I know that sounds like one of those commercials that make you cry, but it really is true. Oh yeah, and be sure to learn CPR!”
Campbell recovered fully, and in February, welcomed her first granddaughter, Graci, into the family.
For more information about getting trained in CPR and other lifesaving courses, visit the "Health & Safety Services" section of Redcross.org.
Jay Foley is the Director of Community Development for the Merrimack Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross in Ward Hill, Mass.
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