Fast Action Saves a Teammate's Life

It started out, like most days, with an early morning swim.

Monday, March 27, 2023, and it was off to the pool to meet teammates before heading to the office, the job and so much more. Not long after a 20-minute warm-up by members of the Middlesex master’s team, the usual enjoyment and camaraderie suddenly turned to distress and consternation at the East Lions Community Centre in London, Ont.

One swimmer, having collapsed, with what was later determined to be a heart related matter, was lying motionless with his body half out of the pool. His legs were dangling in the water.

It was a scene, at this site, that no one had experienced in past.

Checking with medical experts, they say that anytime the heart stops there is great concern. The lack of blood flow to the brain, if not restored immediately, can cause a person to lose consciousness, develop brain damage or even die.

In this case, the immobile individual was called Brandon Schaufele. He’s a triathlete and extremely fit 43-year-old. Schaufele had a sudden cardiac arrest. In short, his heart malfunctioned. He was motionless on his back.

Schaufele had no heartbeat. There was no pulse. He was unconscious. Vital signs were absent. With others watching, shock and trepidation set in at the poolside.

Ian Ball and Tristan Squire-Smith, along with head coach Mackenzie Salmon, rapidly went to the aid of their friend and teammate. Joining them was the facility lifeguard, who was qualified in dealing with emergencies.

People had gone looking for the AED, the acronym for an automated external defibrillator – which, was later determined, had been tucked under a bench in the office of the lifeguard and not easily visible.

Squire-Smith had also looked around for the AED but could not locate it. He ran through the changeroom, then the front desk area and by the time he had circled back, the lifeguard had already brought the entire kit, which included the AED, oxygen, etc.

Having an AED readily available serves to help any person in need of the machine, by analyzing the heart’s rhythm. The unit, when used properly, produces an electric shock.

On this day, Schaufele was extremely fortunate there was a great deal of medical experience at the pool. Ball is also known as Dr. Ball, a trauma physician in the Intensive Care Unit at London’s Victoria Hospital. Squire-Smith is a front-line registered nurse. Salmon, with extensive life-saving training, is the head coach and president of the popular Middlesex swim club that has more than 225 members.

Although friends, Dr. Ball and Squire-Smith had never worked together professionally in any capacity, let alone to save the life of a close friend. What became quite evident was their training and skill as they instantaneous took action to save Schaufele’s life.

The quick response, with five rounds of cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) along with Schaufele being shocked three times with the AED, resulted in him regaining consciousness. Fire, police, and paramedic staff had also arrived after responding to an emergency 911 call. There was a team in place to unify experience.

Everything had happened so fast.

The disturbing look of bewilderment from others at poolside, who had watched in horror, was numbing. Human nature being what it is, there may have been some people too shaken, or intimidated, at responding for fear of making possible mistakes.

“I have been a doctor for 21 years, but what happened was very different for me,” said Dr. Ball. “(Schaufele) is a friend, and there he was, in need of serious help. Seconds mattered. You try very hard to control your emotions, remain calm, while also having terrible thoughts that he could die.”

As for Schaufele, when he is not actively involved in triathlon events, swimming with Middlesex and keeping physically fit, his focus is on duties as the Director of the Ivey Energy Policy and Management Centre and as Professor of Business, Economics, and Public Policy at the Ivey Business School at Western University. He is also married and the father of three.

“We agree that the more people that learn first aid and CPR, the better, but the team in this case was comprised of professional health care providers with years of training and experience,” said Dr. Ball. “Brandon was pulseless for about 12 minutes and when paramedics showed up, he was conscious.”

A day earlier, Dr. Ball competed at a swim meet in Nepean. Earlier that morning, Schaufele ribbed him, suggesting that he takes a one-day break from the pool and skip the (Middlesex) workout.

“When we later saw him lying on his back, Mackenzie’s face dropped, and we were out of the pool and over to help in seconds. We were able to open his airway, perform chest compressions, defibrillate him with the AED and go with him in the ambulance to the hospital.”

Dr. Ball said he believed that if Schaufele had lost consciousness in the water, the situation would have been far more serious. Concern was always an issue - especially relating to any damage suffered in the time between his heart stopping and the recovery.

“These events can be very traumatic to others who may have flashbacks from previous traumatic experiences. It was challenging for some swimmers to return to the pool,” said Dr. Ball, who emphasized the importance of teamwork that included the lifeguard, police, fire, and paramedic staff. “He had a variety of tests taken at the hospital and everything came back normal. No one knows for sure what caused (the cardiac arrest).”

Now, several weeks after the incident, Squire-Smith recalled the scene - in a telephone conversation with me – and how vigorously he recommended that athletic centres, schools, businesses, and a range of other facilities, all have an AED on site.

“I’m not confident we would have got him back (to life) if it wasn’t for the AED,” said Squire-Smith, who also works as a real estate agent. “Get an AED, make sure people know how to use it, make it visible, and ensure signage as well as information are clear on its location.

“This was a situation in which everything went right for (Schaufele). There was no squabbling over rules, we had an AED and did what had to be done. For a guy, a friend, who was clinically dead, this was all surreal. We were able to get his heart re-started.”

As Schaufele’s heart got restarted, while still completely confused and unaware of his environment, he tried to get up on his own. Schaufele had no short-term memory and would, eventually, get debriefed in the ambulance and later in the hospital.

“I remember getting up early that day for practice, arrived at the pool – and that’s it,” said Schaufele, who was born in Medicine Hat, Alta. “I am happy to let slip from memory what had happened, but I know that I am exceedingly lucky and that there is something that I will never forget. A doctor, a nurse and a coach brought me back to life. I would have had severe brain damage if not for their quick action.”

Schaufele spent a combined nine days in hospital, first at Victoria and then was transferred to the University Hospital – London Health Sciences Centre. In that time span, he underwent a variety of tests and scans to see if officials could determine what had caused the attack.

“I was told there is no identifiable cause. No injury to the heart. The brain is good, and I could resume all activities,” said Schaufele. “I’d call it a freak occurrence and I have an insurance policy now in my chest - and a second chance at life.”

Schaufele was referring to his surgery, in which medical staff implanted a battery-powered pacemaker-type cardio defibrillator in his chest. He also said the time was right for him to refresh his own life saving skills.

Getting back to the swim club owner and coach, Salmon was appeased knowing that his club was fortunate to have medical and health professionals on the team.

“When something unexpectedly like this happens, you are fortunate, make that lucky, to have these guys right there with experience, equipment, and oxygen trying to save a life,” said Salmon. “You’re watching a not so good scene. Then it becomes one in which a man regains consciousness and is in good health and now eager to get back in the water.”

For Schaufele, counting down the days until he returns to the pool, life continues. It’s doing what he finds rewarding and he knows, even when things go wrong, it doesn’t have to be the end of the line.

David Grossman is a veteran multi award-winning Journalist and Broadcaster with some of Canada’s major media, including the Toronto Star and SPORTSNET 590 THE FAN, and a Public Relations professional for 50+ years in Canadian sports and Government relations.