Now, a few weeks after the dramatic flight to Finnmark, he enjoys the view from his veranda in Hol. It was not a given that Petter Rukke would get to enjoy the warm summer weather. – I couldn’t breathe. Then I look at the clock and it is five past nine. And then it’s as if someone pulls back a curtain, and it becomes completely dark. And then it felt as if I was flying backwards, explains Rukke. Petter Rukke is grateful that he can enjoy the summer weather on the terrace. Photo: Tordis Gauteplass / news It was Hallingdølen that first mentioned the case. Next to Rukke sat a fellow mayor, Merete Myhre Moen. She is the mayor of Tynset municipality, and she acted resolutely that day on the plane. – Are you OK? Petter Rukke is eternally grateful that Merete Myhre Moen was so resolute and started CPR right away. Photo: Tordis Gauteplass / news Merete Myhre Moen’s face appears on the screen of Rukke’s phone. They talk to each other via video call. – It’s going well, you know. Thanks to your efforts, I’m sitting in the sun enjoying myself, Rukke replies. Drag him down on the floor Moen has a background as a nurse in heart monitoring. She quickly realized that her partner had suffered a cardiac arrest. – He stared at the ceiling with wide-open eyes. He was not conscious, says Moen. She quickly pulled Rukke down to the floor in the aisle and began CPR. How to perform life-saving first aid: Examine the patient systematically. Involve people around you, call 1-1-3, and take the necessary life-saving measures: What has happened? Is the patient awake? If the patient does not respond to accusations, touch or pain stimuli, call for help! Provide a free airway and check if the patient is breathing. If the patient is breathing: If the patient is unconscious, place in the lateral position and monitor breathing. Make sure the person is not chilled. Get a blanket or garment under the patient. How is the skin? Pale, cold and clammy skin indicates circulatory failure. Also examine the patient for other injuries. If the patient is not breathing or has cardiac arrest: Notify 1-1-3 of cardiac arrest (put the phone on speakerphone) Start cardiopulmonary resuscitation in a cycle of 30 compressions and 2 breaths. If there are more people present, get the defibrillator. Turn this on and follow the instructions. The chance of survival decreases the longer it takes before starting compressions and ventilations (preferably in combination with the use of a defibrillator). Source: Red Cross At the same time that Moen performed CPR, the flight crew retrieved the defibrillator. But before they could use it, Rukke started to move. Petter Rukke was under observation for five days after his heart stopped. Photo: PRIVAT – It is proof that if you get started quickly, you can get the heart started without a defibrillator, says Rukke. Both believe that everyone should know CPR, because time is of the essence. How much do you know about first aid? Test yourself with the quiz at the bottom of the case. – People have more competence Einar Irjan Ananiassen is a senior advisor for first aid at the Red Cross. Photo: Marthe Synnøve Johannessen / news – When it comes to survival in sudden cardiac arrest outside hospital, we see that the numbers have only gotten a lot better in the last 20-30 years. – The reason for that is perhaps that there are more defibrillators and that people have more expertise in first aid than before. That’s what Einar Irjan Ananiassen, senior advisor in first aid at the Red Cross, Senior Anesthetist at UNN, Håkon Kvåle Bakke, and a research group, have looked at what treatment random passers-by have given people who need first aid. Bakke points out that Norwegians are good at providing first aid of good quality, and have been for a long time. – The fact that first aid has been part of the school system since the 60s, as well as national campaigns such as “Together we save lives”, has created a very good starting point. We are still good, and most people can do more than they think when it comes down to it, says Bakke. The number of out-of-hospital resuscitations has been recorded since 2013. The figure for 2023 was the highest recorded in ten years. It’s a good idea to be prepared The Red Cross recommends finding out where the nearest defibrillator is. – You don’t have time to look for a defibrillator when you’re in the situation. But one should not end with compressions. It must be one of those who is not doing CPR who fetches the defibrillator, says senior adviser Ananiassen. Ananiassen praises Moen for her efforts that saved Rukke’s life. – It is the type of quick reactions that means that more and more people survive sudden cardiac arrest outside hospital, says Ananiassen. You can locate your nearest defibrillator using the defibrillator register. Defibrillator A defibrillator can be used to stop an abnormal heart rhythm and restart the heart In addition to defibrillators used in hospitals, there are today smaller, more convenient, automatic, mobile defibrillators whose use is almost self-explanatory Such simple defibrillators can be found in day in many public places, in shopping centers and private businesses where there are people trained to use it The defibrillator is not intended for children under 1 year of age. Source: Norsk Helseinformatikk Neither breath nor pulse Mayor of Tynset, Merete Myhre Moen, sat next to Petter Rukke on the plane. Photo: Geir Olav Slåen / news Merete Myhre Moen says that her former mayor-colleague had neither a pulse nor breathing when he was laid on the floor in the aisle of the plane. – You were quite blue in the face, so I just had to start CPR, Moen tells Rukke. – And it was good, points out Rukke. – I thought for a while you owed me some ribs, laughs the 64-year-old. – I had a bit of a guilty conscience. At the same time, it’s what you don’t have to be afraid of; to take the cardiac compressions hard enough if it is to have any effect, says Moen. – Yes, it is better to feel the pain there than to have no pain later. The alternative was bad. At least I have been documented that I am not a cripple, laughs Rukke. And Petter Rukke has not suffered any injuries after the incident either. Published 02.07.2024, at 17.08
ttn-69
The former mayor suffered a cardiac arrest. Was saved by a colleague. – news Buskerud – Local news, TV and radio
