A middle school football player who collapsed and flatlined on the field is alive thanks to new training now mandatory in Texas public schools.
Leaders at Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD said seventh-grade football teams were facing off at Trinity High School Stadium on Monday when a player from Haltom Middle School suffered cardiac arrest.
Assistant Athletic Trainer Saad Rajabali was in his office when he got a call from a trainer on site to respond.
"She called me for the AED. My office is at the end of this building, so I grabbed one from there and came running out. By the time I got out, it was around the 30-35 yard line on this side," said Rajabali. "They were basically rolling him over, coaches and her. So at that point, I just administered the AED."
Rajabali said the machine advised and delivered a shock. He then performed chest compressions as they waited for an ambulance.
"I can remember fluidly, you know, doing everything, and I think it's because we practice so much, and we have emergency action plans in place that will tell you exactly where you're supposed to be, who to call, you know, all that stuff," he said.
"We worked hard to get all those things in place," said HEB Superintendent Dr. Joe Harrington.
Harrington said it's been about a year and a half since the district became the second in the state to work with the American Heart Association on implementing a cardiac emergency response plan, or CERP, training staff and students to be able to respond to emergencies like Monday night's.
"Our goal is every kid is going to be on the mannequin from grade 5 on, and so we've got all of our 5th and 6th graders already. We've got our athletes and our fine arts all participating," he said.
This year, Texas passed a new law requiring all districts to implement CERPs. It includes a requirement for seventh through 12th graders to be trained on both CPR and AEDs.
"I was pretty excited that it was a happy outcome," said Rajabali. "I think I'm more glad that I know that our plan works, you know. A lot of people don't have that unfortunate or fortunate event to tell them that, hey, what you've planned to do in these situations will work. We know now, and now we can make it even better."
According to the district, the student was transported to Cook Children's Hospital, where he's alert and recovering.