Former ambulance dispatcher reunites with crew who saved his life

A former East of England Ambulance Service Trust (EEAST) dispatcher has been reunited with the ambulance crew who saved his life after he suffered a cardiac arrest at home.

Seb Hankinson, from Cambourne, Cambridgeshire, who has been living with kidney failure since 2023, went into cardiac arrest on 7 January after complications related to his medication.

Seb has no memory of the incident, but concern was raised when he failed to attend his regular dialysis session. A friend went to check on him and found him unconscious, immediately calling 999. With the help of a neighbour’s daughter, life-saving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was carried out with support and guidance provided by video link from the EEAST control until the ambulance crew arrived.

Seb was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, where he has since made a full recovery. He continues to receive dialysis and is hoping for news of a kidney transplant soon.

Seb previously worked as a dispatcher for the ambulance service when it was known as the Beds and Herts Ambulance Service. When he met Paramedic Claire Dunham and Emergency Care Assistant Dominic Minnet once again at Addenbrooke’s ambulance station, he reflected on just how fortunate he had been. Fewer than one in ten cardiac arrests that occur outside hospital in England result in a full recovery.

Seb said: “It’s good to be healthy again, and back to normal. I can’t thank everyone enough who helped me that day.”

Emergency Care Assistant, Dominic Minett, said it was inspiring to see Seb doing so well just months after such a serious incident.

Paramedic Claire Dunham praised the actions of those first on scene, adding: “Early intervention by bystanders was instrumental in Seb’s recovery. We brought the skills and the technology, but the CPR carried out in the five or six minutes before we arrived meant we had a viable patient to work on. That made all the difference.”

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Find out about EEAST’s free basic life support (BLS) and defibrillator awareness training..