Felt unwell on the bus, got off at the station – and collapsed on the sidewalk

A woman aged about 66 suffered cardiac arrest and collapsed shortly after getting off a bus on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv. MDA responders who were called to the scene provided her with medical treatment, and after an electric shock using a defibrillator, her heart began beating again.

Immediate response teams were dispatched to the scene, including motorcycle units and MDA rapid response vehicles. MDA volunteer Professor Kobi Shaham, director of the intensive cardiac care unit at the Ichilov Medical Center, also assisted in the resuscitation efforts.

The teams found the woman unconscious, without breathing and without a pulse. After the pulse returned, an MDA intensive care ambulance team, led by paramedic Shaked Bar-Zeev, continued advanced medical treatment and evacuated her directly to the catheterization lab at Ichilov. Her condition was defined as stable.

Emergency medical technician from the MDA rapid response vehicle unit, Yaron Dori, said:

"When we arrived at the scene, we saw a woman in her sixties lying on the sidewalk, unconscious, without breathing and without a pulse. A friend who was with her told us that she felt unwell during the bus ride, and immediately after they got off at the station, she collapsed. During the resuscitation efforts, an electric shock was administered, and after the shock, her heart began beating again."

Professor Shaham and paramedic Shaked Bar-Zeev stated that the woman received advanced life-saving medical treatment, including preparations for drug therapy, in coordination with the doctors in the catheterization lab. According to them, she regained consciousness during the evacuation.