Woman says she was 'refused' defibrillator while mum had cardiac arrest

A woman who said she was denied use of a defibrillator when her mother had a cardiac arrest has spoken about her heartbreak, anger and shock.

Lian Scotto D'abusco from St Mellons, Cardiff collapsed in the early hours of April 24.

Daughter Courtney said she was told by emergency services to get a defibrillator that was "available 24/7" for the public to use from a nearby nursing home before the paramedics arrived."

But the 23-year-old said the Willowbrook House care home would not let her use the life saving device - claiming she was told it was not available to the public.

Mum Lian was rushed to hospital and, according to doctors, she had suffered 15 minutes of brain damage while she was not breathing.

Her family say they were told she had a "shockable heart rhythm", which meant at the time she needed a defibrillator as soon as possible.

Lian later died seven weeks later from pneumonia aged just 43. Doctors said it was not possible to say that Lian would still be alive if the defibrillator had been used on her - but say a person's chances of survival and recovery, in general, are massively improved the sooner it is used.

But daughter Courtney said her mum could still be alive if she had been able to use the device - and insists it could have improved her mum's recovery time in hospital.

Courtney said: "[My mum] came in my room around four o'clock in the morning saying that she had chest pains and asked me if I would come downstairs to look after her. So I went downstairs and not even a minute later she collapsed."

Courtney called the ambulance, who she said instructed her to go Willowbrook House, a nursing home in St Mellons, which was given a defibrillator for public use in 2014.

Courtney handed her phone to her dad, who was performing CPR on Lian, before she "sped off" to the care home, arriving there in just two minutes.

"I jumped out of my car and was knocking and knocking. I was approached by this one woman. I was just really startled and I was like, 'Can I have the defib? The ambulance want me to come and get it. My mum's not breathing.' She said, 'Oh, two seconds' and I thought she was going to get it."

But instead Courtney said the woman returned with two other members of staff, who told her they were not allowed to give out the defibrillator for the public to use.

"I said, 'Well, the ambulance people sent me here.' And I couldn't even call anybody because I gave my phone to my dad. I didn't have anything on me - so I couldn't call the police, I couldn't call the ambulance people, I couldn't call anybody to confirm," she said.

"Obviously I feel really guilty about that and I feel like I could've done more, but they didn't even open the front door for me, so there was nothing I could've done."

Going home empty handed was "heart-breaking" for Courtney.

"I thought I really could've helped her," she said.

She added that the time she spent at the care home was "crucial" for her mother, who sustained 15 minutes of brain damage while she was not breathing.

"That was significant for her recovery, because if she didn't have so much brain damage she would have recovered quicker and then she wouldn't have caught pneumonia and so on, so on."

By the time Courtney had returned home, two ambulances had arrived. Paramedics performed CPR before using their own defibrillator on Lian, whose heart kept stopping and starting.

Lian was blue-lighted to hospital, where she spent seven weeks being treated. However, after contracting pneumonia, she sadly died on June 11.

On the day she died, doctors explained to Courtney that, in some cases of cardiac arrest defibrillators don't make a difference.

However, Courtney said that in her mum's case medics told her that the device was necessary to get her heart back to the right rhythm.

"When I spoke to one of the doctors when she passed away, I asked her about the defib situation, and she said, 'I can't say if it would have helped her or not, but she had a shockable heart rhythm, which meant she needed a defibrillator as soon as possible'."

She added: "I was just really shocked that the ambulance told me to go there, and then none of the staff knew what I was talking about"

Courtney said there is now a sign next to the defibrillator in the care home stating that it must be given out for public use, which, according to a friend that works there, was put up by the manager the day after the incident in April.

The defibrillator supplier also explained to Courtney in a letter that they gave the defibrillator to Willowbrook House all the way back in 2014 and stated at the time that it was for public use.

The ambulance service also confirmed to Courtney that Willowbrook house is on there system for having a defibrillator that the public can use.

"But obviously staff weren't told that it was for public use," she said. "No-one ever knew to give it to me. They said no-one had ever come for it. So obviously I was the first person to have come for it in St Mellons, so they didn't know to give it out. There was a fault there."

She has since received a letter of apology from Willowbrook, but she said they insist they "acted accordingly" with their knowledge of the defibrillator.

"No one has taken any accountability, which is the reason I'm taking it forward. Now, when someone else goes back there, they'll be able to give it to them. I'm really happy about that.

"But it should never have happened in the first place and it could have potentially saved her life. It could have stopped her from having so much brain damage, which would have helped her recovery time. That was just such a knock-on effect.

"And regardless whether she passed away or not, it's just so crazy that I would have been refused it."

Moving forward, Courtney is calling for greater awareness of defibrillators for those who need them, and better communication between those who supply and hold them.

"You start losing your brain calls after five to six minutes [of lack of oxygen to the brain].

"A defibrillator could make a huge difference which is the reason why they're in the community and a couple of minutes away from everybody. They're such a necessity.

"Everyone should know where the defibs are, and everyone who has a hold of the defibs should know exactly what to do when someone comes to ask for it.

"I think a lot of people are not aware of the fact that the defibrillator is for public use and it's not just for that place."

She added: "There should be better communication between the the ambulance service and the people who hold the defib.

"There should be principles in place to make sure that people know exactly what to do."

Looking back, Courtney said she is "so disappointed" at what happened to her mum that night.

"She really didn't deserve it. If you met her, she was one of the nicest people ever. She would do anything for anyone. For that to happen, I just can't believe it."

Willowbrook House declined to comment.