CHICAGO – On January 2, 2023, on a Monday Night Football broadcast watched by 23.8 million people, Buffalo Bills Safety Damar Hamlin, completed an apparently routine tackle – before collapsed on the field due to cardiac arrest.
Paramedics worked nearly 20 minutes on the field to resuscitate him before restoring his heart rhythm and transferring him to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, where he spent several days. in critical condition in the ICU and in the following weeks in slow recovery.
Barley 100 days later, Hamlin strode on the HIMSS23 stage alongside Dr. Ryan Earnest, an acute care surgeon at UC Health.
“We talk about medical outcomes,” said panelist Mark Sugrue, RN, CEO at FTI Consulting and HIMSS board member, introducing the couple. “Well, here are your medical results!”
In their discussion. Hamlin and Earnest discussed the near-death medical emergency and Hamlin’s miraculous recovery. Hamlin has described how the incident has affected his outlook on life – and how it has presented some unexpected opportunities, especially around his new national campaign to promote CPR training.
They also talk about the key value of care coordination. Sugrue notes that there are about 30 paramedics on average at a given NFL game, and the league requires them to team up before each game in an hour-long discussion to coordinate teams and prepare. for all medical possibilities.
Prior to his incident, Hamlin didn’t realize that those protocols were even in place.
“It was then that I learned that two hours before we were on the pitch, they were looking at every situation in terms of what could happen, what could go wrong and the possibility of something really happening. How serious is the situation like mine,” he said.
“But that’s why there’s proper preparation – it delivers the right performance. I’m grateful they’ve taken the time to make sure they’re interested in us.”
Since his recovery, Hamlin has jumped into advocacy work around CPR education and broader AED access, tools that have saved his life.
“I did a lot of work to keep up with the American Heart Association, going around the world and just trying to make an impact there and influence people,” he said. “I want [promote] CPR for all youth soccer leagues and all locations in my hometown of Pittsburgh, and possibly in the Cincinnati and Buffalo areas.
“We’re in a great situation with Damar,” Earnest said, having skilled paramedics and lifesaving equipment ready to help resuscitate him. “He’s trying to give people the same access he’s had. Access is something we as a provider want people to have. Of course, we want to treat everyone. We want to give people the opportunity to be cared for – but there are always challenges with that.”
“What I’ve learned a little bit from watching Damar over the last few months is the influence an individual can have on his or her own sphere, whatever that may be. We cannot mitigate the impact that each of us has. we can have as individuals. Each of us is in different circumstances, but don’t underestimate our individual sphere of influence.”
Hamlin said he feels “lucky” to have received immediate life-saving attention on the field, the top-notch clinical care he received at UC Health, the emotional support he received from Buffalo. Bills, other NFL players and fans around the world, and of course, “my biological family, my mother, my father, my brother.”
During his recovery, he was in “the best position,” he said. “The only thing I have to worry about is staying healthy, focusing on my breathing, and I have a clear mind about the whole process for my family and my team. So I’m just indebted.”
“Care isn’t just about the medical side,” says Earnest. “It has to do with the support system, the emotions involved, not just in the patient themselves but in everyone around them. And of course, with healthcare information, there are so many other aspects. People can get their charts online very easily personally, and so can their families.
He added: “People need their information, but we also need to make sure we keep them informed of what it means.”
“Everybody on my care team goes out of their way to make sure I understand everything that is going on and that I know exactly what I am going to do for each test, what the test is doing,” says Hamlin.
So now he is paying it forward with his support and philanthropy.
“I’m putting that into work. And with my background as well. Try to make an impact and let kids come from places like me or, just give them a level playing field for all. children so that they don’t feel confined only to their environment.”
And now – since he was officially medically allowed to resume football activities, just this week – he has a new goal to work towards.
“I just focus on the discipline of what it takes, what it takes to win a Super Bowl. I just do those things every day. No matter how I feel, I’m not going to ride a roller coaster. I’m just focused on getting the job done. I know it’s a journey, but I’m committed to it.”
“As a safe in the NFL, you have to always focus on improving, you can’t go sideways,” he said.
“You can’t. You lose your place so quickly. And that’s part of the reason why, in just over three months, I’ve been cleared and I’ll be right back to my job. Because it takes a lot of work. It takes a lot of time to excel in this area, and it takes a lot of effort. It’s an intimidating process. It’s an anxiety-filled process, but my heart is in it. I’m committed to this. It.
“I have to work,” he said. “You can’t skip work. I’m working right now and we all have to keep working. It’s hard. But you have to keep going.”
Mike Miliard is executive editor of Healthcare IT News
Email the writer: [email protected]
Healthcare IT News is a publication of HIMSS.
