Northern Ireland

Boy (12) 'saved dad’s life' after cardiac arrest

Paddy Gallagher with his son Emmet, who helped saved his life after a cardiac arrest
Paddy Gallagher with his son Emmet, who helped saved his life after a cardiac arrest
By Suzanne McGonagle

The mother of a 12-year-old boy from Belfast has described how her son "saved his daddy’s life" after he had suffered a heart attack.

Nicola McCrudden praised the quick actions of her son Emmet in giving his father CPR after the attack, which was followed by a cardiac arrest, aged just 52. 

"If Emmet hadn’t of been there and we weren’t able to start and continue CPR, Paddy wouldn’t be here,” she said.

To mark World Heart Day today, Ms McCrudden is sharing the story of what happened to her partner Paddy Gallagher earlier this year in a bid to spread awareness of how a heart attack can happen to anyone at any time and what people should do in this situation.

Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke (NICHS) says coronary heart disease is the single biggest cause of premature death in Northern Ireland, in people younger than 75, with 16 people suffering a heart attack in the north every day.

“Paddy didn’t have any obvious signs or symptoms leading up to his heart attack," said Ms McCrudden.

"He had what is known as a widow maker heart attack which came on suddenly.

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Paddy Gallagher suffered a heart attack, followed by a cardiac arrest, aged just 52
Paddy Gallagher suffered a heart attack, followed by a cardiac arrest, aged just 52

“Paddy works in construction and was coming home from work tired.

"We put it down to him getting a bit older and the impact heavy work was having on his body, even though he was physically fit.

"He also had Long Covid and hadn’t been quite the same since.

"Looking back now however, the constant tiredness was a sign, but it was the only one."

Ms McCrudden told of how they were visiting family in Donegal when he first took unwell, which came "completely out of the blue".

Mr Gallagher was taken to hospital where he had five stents inserted, but unfortunately, worse was still to come.

Nicola, Paddy, Emmet and Eimear in London
Nicola, Paddy, Emmet and Eimear in London

“A few days after Paddy came home from hospital I was at the gym," said Ms McCrudden.

"Our son Emmet, who was 12 at the time, phoned and said, ‘Daddy’s on the floor’.

"Paddy was having a cardiac arrest.

"I told Emmet to ring 999 and just dropped everything and ran out of the gym.

“It was so frightening. In your mind you're thinking, he’s just a child, will he be able to do what needs to be done?

"When I got home five minutes later, Emmet was doing CPR with the call handler’s guidance.

"It is amazing he was able to do that at his age - he was alone and terrified but without a doubt his actions saved his Daddy’s life."

Ms McCrudden said she took over doing CPR before a neighbour also came to help.

“People may be scared of having to do CPR, but they shouldn’t be, it could save a life," she said.

"Every minute matters in these sorts of circumstances. If Emmet hadn’t of been there and we weren’t able to start and continue CPR, Paddy wouldn’t be here."

After paramedics arrived, they had to "shock Paddy to get a pulse" before transferring him to hospital where he underwent an emergency procedure to unblock a stent.

"It's one of those things you never think will actually happen. You certainly don’t think it’s going to happen twice," said Ms McCrudden.

Mr Gallagher is now "doing well", but has been unable to return to work and "isn’t able to do all the things he used to do".

But he said: "When something like this happens, it is a reality check in terms of your life, your family is what is most important.

"We’ve had family and friends make changes to their lifestyles after what has happened to me and that’s great to see.

“If you are experiencing something you feel isn’t right for you health wise, whether it’s a twinge or constant tiredness or something that’s niggling you, go and get it checked out."

Fidelma Carter from NICHS said: “This World Heart Day we would urge people to remember the STOP acronym.

"Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t realise they are actually having a heart attack.

“The sooner a potential heart attack is recognised, and the faster medical help is sought, the better the chances of recovery are.”