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 Pa. Army Guard Soldier aids heart attack victim By By Sgt. Shane Smith, Joint Force Headquarters, Pennsylvania National Guard
 GREENSBURG, Pa. — Pfc. Fred Vandenheuvel was enjoying dinner with fellow Guard members at a Greensburg restaurant when he witnessed a man collapse. With a background in law enforcement and as a first responder, he leapt into action.  “At first I wasn’t sure what had happened,” recalled Vandenheuvel, a member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard’s 252nd Engineer Company. “The man wasn’t moving. I thought he may have had a heart attack.”  The man was still conscious and complaining of intense chest pain when Vandenheuvel first reached him. Vandenheuvel was asked to call the man’s wife.  “I told his wife where we were, what had happened, and asked if her husband had any prior medical history or heart issues,” he said. “She told me her husband has a history of heart problems.”  Vandenheuvel called 911 and remained on the line with paramedics until they arrived.  “The man had a pulse, but over time his heartbeat became more rapid and he was breathing shallowly,” Vandenheuvel said. “Eventually he appeared to be losing consciousness and wasn’t responding. I performed a sternal rub and he was unresponsive.”  A sternal rub is a technique used to check for consciousness through means of irritation, discomfort and abrasion. The technique helps first responders quickly determine the mental and medical status of a patient.  The paramedics arrived shortly thereafter and were preparing to perform a sternal rub.  “I explained to them that I had already done a rub, and the outcome of it,” Vandenheuval explained, laughing. “I guess that’s a good sign that my training and instincts were correct.”  His quick and decisive actions garnered praise from witnesses and fellow Soldiers.  “A couple that was in the restaurant approached Staff Sgt. Ben Supensky, my supervisor, and told him that they didn’t want to interrupt me mid-action, but were very impressed by how I reacted to the situation,” said Vanderheuvel. “I was just focusing on the man who needed my attention.”
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