If someone collapsed in front of you, could you or others around
you help the victim before emergency personnel arrive? Other
than calling 9-1-1, studies show less than 30% of bystanders
take action or know what to do in such a medical emergency.
Suzanne Majors Davis of Austin learned that firsthand. She was
at an Austin hotel recently when a man collapsed and the
reaction she says was alarming. "It was very alarming. In fact,
it was haunting. I keep thinking about that room where there
were people all around and staring and no one did anything,"
Davis said. After someone called 9-1-1, Davis took action. She
performed CPR techniques she had learned from her son, a Boy
Scout. They were compressions to the man’s chest. She did it to
the beat of the Bee Gees song, "Stayin' Alive." Davis recalled,
"Someone was holding his neck back and I was pumping to Stayin'
Alive and looking to see if he would arouse." Lis Wise is with
the American Red Cross of Central Texas and teaches CPR in
Austin. Wise says, "Starting thos