The story of a 10-year-old who was accidentally run over by a 4WD near Yackandandah is one at the heart of a campaign to keep triple-0 for emergencies.
On October 17, paramedics Tegwyn McManamny and Paul Bellman were called to a farm to find the boy’s motorcycle had become unstable in slippery conditions and slid into the path of the car.
Mr Bellman said what then unfolded was a first for Victoria.
“When we got there, Jordan was talking but obviously in a fair bit of pain … we quickly removed his shirt and saw tyremarks over his chest and abdomen,” he said.
“We were concerned his lung was collapsing, so we inserted a couple IV lines.
“The fluid was going in but his heart rate was getting quite high and his blood pressure was falling.
“We placed a needle between the lung and chest wall and relieved the air, which had a dramatic effect.”
Two Tallangatta paramedics and intensive care flight paramedic Darren Hodge, with the air ambulance, then arrived.
Mr Bellman said Jordan’s condition began to deteriorate again.
“We found there was bleeding in his belly and in the right side of his chest,” he said.
“Darren did another consult and when he hung up the phone, he looked at me and said ‘They want to do a finger thoracostomy’.”
It was the first time the procedure, where a finger is inserted in a hole cut into the chest to relieve pressure, was done to a child in Victoria.
More than 800 millilitres of blood came from Jordan’s chest, but his condition improved.
Jordan was airlifted to the Royal Children’s hospital, where he spent three weeks recovering.
Mr Hodge later described Jordan’s case as the most challenging job in his 30-year career as a paramedic and credited the first respondents as “critical to his survival”.
Mr Bellman said their success was the result of a co-ordinated effort.
“Had we been delayed as little as five minutes, the outcome would have been much different,” he said.
Ambulance Victoria has recently launched a campaign to keep triple-0 for emergencies.
Ms McManamny said recently being reunited with Jordan reinforced what the role of an intensive care paramedic was really about.
“He was so happy, he remembered us both,” she said.
“If people are unsure (about whether there is an emergency) they can call nurse on call.
“If you ring triple-0, you will get an ambulance, but it might be at the expense of someone who desperately needs it … someone like Jordan.”