Doctors said it was fortunate that relatives quickly noticed and called for help.
Another stroke of luck: The family’s second-floor apartment is less than five blocks from TVAC's Windsor Road headquarters.
Four EMTs were stationed there when the call came in at 10 p.m. March 8, TVAC Public Information Officer Larry Robertson said Wednesday.
They got there in two minutes and were joined by two additional off-duty EMTs who were paged “because of the possibility that CPR would be needed,” he said.
The girl was in bed – not breathing with no pulse.
The rescuers immediately began manual CPR, then applied two defibrillator shocks divided by mechanical CPR from a Lucas machine.
By the time they’d gotten her gurney to the hallway, the girl’s pulse was restored, Robertson said.
Paramedics from nearby Holy Name Medical Center arrived and assisted, he added.
The girl was later transferred from Holy Name to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson.
Then, on Tuesday, the TVAC received the good news that she has recovered and would be going home.
“Fast response, adequate staffing, modern equipment, and proper training all added up to a wonderful outcome – and, we hope, a long and healthy life for the patient,” Robertson said.
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