PulsePoint notification leads retired officer to save a life

Lincoln Fire and Rescue said a man is alive morning thanks to the quick action of a bystander. 

Nancy Crist said the Dave Thurber, a public works employee and retired Lincoln Police Officer, was working near the airport Wednesday afternoon when he got an alert on PulsePoint that someone nearby was in cardiac arrest. 

Thurber said Lincoln Public Works started teaching in-house CPR and AED about four years ago. He said they really embraced PulsePoint about three years ago.

“PulsePoint is really the vital link between professional responders and community members that are willing to act when medical emergencies occur,” Thurber said. 

The retired officer said to download PulsePoint even if you don’t know CPR because LFR was a fantastic communications center, so they can give pre-arrival instructions. 

Studies have found the number one indicator of whether or not someone will survive cardiac arrest is a bystander jumping in and starting chest compressions right away, Crist said. 

PulsePoint is a free app that allows you to connect with Lincoln Fire and Rescue’s scanner and get notifications of emergencies around the city. If you’re CPR certified you can sign up to get notifications when someone within a quarter of a mile of your location is in cardiac arrest.

There are more than 17,000 PulsePoint users connect to Lincoln Fire and Rescue, Crist said.

Learn more at https://www.pulsepoint.org/.