Ocean Grove’s Cam Quinten suffers cardiac arrest at Epworth Geelong

After leaving a scheduled heart health appointment with his GP at Epworth Geelong, the 56-year-old Ocean Grove man said he started to feel “a bit ordinary”.

An Ocean Grove man who suffered a cardiac arrest says he was a ’ticking time bomb’ and lucky to be in the right place at the right time.

A Bellarine man said he's lucky to be alive after going into cardiac arrest in the right place at the right time.

After leaving a scheduled heart health appointment with his GP at Epworth Geelong, 56-year-old Ocean Grove man Cam Quinten said he started to feel “a bit ordinary”.

Mr Quinten began walking back to the hospital, just making it to the emergency department before he collapsed.

Hospital staff performed CPR and used a defibrillator before Mr Quinten underwent an emergency cardiac procedure in an induced coma.

He remained in intensive care for three days and spent the next 10 days recovering in hospital.

Cam Quinten, 56, was at Epworth Geelong for a heart health appointment on the advice of his GP when he started feeling ‘a bit ordinary’ as he headed back to his car.

“It was by complete chance that I walked into the waiting room at Epworth Geelong. I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time,” Mr Quinten said.

“I believe Epworth staff saved my life, it’s pretty amazing.

“I know for them, it’s probably just what they do every day, but it’s incredible what these people do for a job and how it has impacted someone like me.”

Cardiologist A/Prof Adam Hutchison who works at the hospital said only around 25 per cent of patients survive an in hospital cardiac arrest, with that number decreasing to around 5 per cent if a person arrests in the community.

“If he had made the decision to go to the car, he probably wouldn’t be with us today,” A/Prof Hutchison said.

“Cardiac arrest is where the electrical system of the heart malfunctions and effectively you get no meaningful pumping of the heart, and the brain is starved of oxygen. CPR or defibrillation are vital.

“The reason why Cam is in such a good state is obviously luck that he had his cardiac arrest in the right place.

“The emergency department worked really well doing resuscitation and trying to keep his brain alive while we worked on his heart.”

Mr Quinten had been receiving regular GP check-ups in recent years, with his doctor recommending a heart stress test following signs his blood pressure had raised.

He’s now on a mission to spread the word about the importance of regular health checks.

“I am relatively young, fairly fit, I go for bike rides and walks in the morning and I eat a normal diet. It can happen to anyone,” Mr Quinten said.

“I feel like a reformed smoker telling everyone they should go to the GP and get a check-up.

“Everyone around me has been interested in how I am going, but they are also thinking ‘I should do something about my health too’ and that’s a good thing.”

Originally published as Ocean Grove’s Cam Quinten suffers cardiac arrest at Epworth Geelong