Quick-thinking Downpatrick Poundland colleagues come to aid of elderly stroke victim.
Staff from Downpatrick are in the news once again! The third time in just over a month! Two Downpatrick Poundland colleagues at the Downpatrick store in Northern Ireland came to the rescue when a customer suffered a stroke.
On Tuesday (12 May), Karen Connor saw that an elderly customer was unwell and in distress and called for fellow supervisor Emma McCarron who got a chair.
of a lady having a stroke in the Poundland store in Downpatrick.
Remembering a recent TV health campaign, they realised she could be having a stroke. She remembered the FAST principles : face dropping on one side, arms weak, speech slurred, and time to call an ambulance.
The lady asked them to call a friend, but they also dialled 999 where the operator talked them through a series of checks and despatched an emergency responder who radioed for an ambulance.
She was taken to hospital where she is now recovering. Her friend later visited the store and said Karen’s and Emma’s first aid intervention had prevented a much more serious health outcome.
Karen, who has worked at Poundland for nearly five years, said: “The customer was slurring her words and having trouble with her right side. I’ve seen the TV adverts and the first thing I thought was that it could be stroke.”
Emma, who has worked at Poundland for more than seven years, added: “I could see she was leaning on Karen and knew straight away that we needed to ring for an ambulance. We’re glad we could help her.”
