Man Collapses During Badminton, Dies As Bystanders Fail To Give Proper CPR
"To my shock, someone had already brought an AED, but simply left it on the ground, unused," he said.
Social activist Kuan Chee Heng, better known as Uncle Kentang, has voiced his sadness and frustration over the loss of a life — an outcome he believes could have been prevented with basic first aid knowledge
"Something happened last night that left me both heartbroken and angry," he shared in an emotional Facebook post on Thursday, 3 April.
Kuan, who was on his way home from helping out at another emergency, said he received a call requesting an ambulance.
Despite his exhaustion, he inquired about the situation, and was told that a man had collapsed while playing badminton in Puchong
"The caller told me that the man was still breathing," he wrote.
Fearing that the man's condition could deteriorate, Kuan rushed to the location. In the meantime, he instructed the caller to retrieve an automated external defibrillator (AED) from a nearby mamak.
He was told that a call to 999 had already been made.
"When I arrived about 10 minutes later, the ambulance had not arrived yet. From afar, I saw the man lying on the ground," he recalled.
Image via 马铃薯叔叔日志 Uncle Kentang (Facebook)
He saw one of the players trying to perform CPR on the man, but Kuan noted that the compressions were not deep enough
He quickly took over and told someone to open the AED kit.
"To my shock, someone had already brought an AED, but simply left it on the ground, unused," he said.
Despite being physically drained, Kuan performed CPR and used the AED on the collapsed man until the ambulance arrived
Kuan helped load the man onto the ambulance and continued resuscitation efforts during the ride to the hospital.
By then, the patient's wife and children had arrived at the scene, and were crying and pleading for him to hold on.
"I pressed even harder in my CPR efforts. I knew this was a battle between life and death... I kept performing CPR as the medical team provided oxygen and other necessary aid. The paramedics and I gave it our all," Kuan said.
Upon arrival, the patient was rushed into the emergency room.
Meanwhile, Kuan said he was overwhelmed by exhaustion, feeling faint and nauseous outside the hospital.
Unfortunately, later that night, at 11pm, Kuan received heartbreaking news that the man had passed away.
Reflecting on the incident, Kuan questioned, "If proper CPR had been done right away, if the AED had been used on time, could we have saved him?"
He also lamented that there was no AED at the badminton facility, as well as how the many bystanders had simply watched the situation unfold, with some even continuing to play badminton.
"Why did so many bystanders just watch instead of helping with the CPR? Why did no one know how to use the AED?" Kuan asked.
Kuan ended his post with a heartfelt plea to all Malaysians: "Everyone should learn how to perform effective CPR and how to use an AED"
"Every sports venue must also have an AED," he said.
"Whether or not his life could've been saved, we'll never know — but if help had come faster and correctly, there might have been a chance.
"I'm very tired and sad. May God bless his soul and bring comfort to his family," he said.
Uncle Kentang also recently urged Malaysians to learn life-saving precautions in case of fire emergencies:
Here are other times Malaysians managed to save lives using CPR:
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