Cadet Jason puts his life-saving skills to the test
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WITHIN 24 hours of attending a first aid course, a teenage army cadet coolly deployed his new skills to potentially save the life of a man who collapsed in the centre of Thurso.
Cadet Lance Corporal Jason Miller had walked into the town after finishing school on Monday when he saw the man had fallen outside the Dounreay.com office in the town’s pedestrian precinct.
The 15-year-old Thurso High pupil ran over and put his training skills to the test. He found the 51-year old conscious and breathing but that his responsiveness was slow.
After checking there were no obvious injuries, Jason placed the casualty in the recovery position. While another passer-by called for an ambulance, Jason waited with the man until police arrived.
Jason, of Farmacres, Thurso, said this was the first time he had found himself in that situation but said he knew exactly what needed to be done.
Speaking during his school lunch-break yesterday, he said: "The incident happened as I was returning home from school and I saw the man in some discomfort lying down in the precinct.
"I was a bit shocked just to see people walking past him so I ran over to check he was breathing and put him in the recovery position."
He continued: "A woman from a nearby building came out and told me she had called for an ambulance and I just kept talking to the man to make sure he stayed awake, but I treated him as an unconscious casualty.
"When the police arrived they took over the situation. I don’t know much about the man but I’m glad I was able to help him.
"I learned a lot from the first aid training course but I didn’t expect to use my skills so quickly."
The man was taken by ambulance to the town’s Dunbar Hospital where he was discharged after a check-up by a local GP.
Jason had been a member of the contingent of the Thurso 1st Batallion Highlanders Army Cadet Force who attended a first aid training course in Dingwall on Saturday and Sunday.
Thurso detachment commander Captain Stephen Mezals said that for Jason to put his new skills into practice to help save the life of a man was a great example to his colleagues.
"I’m sure that Jason’s quick and decisive actions had a positive effect on the casualty’s recovery," he said.
"It is encouraging to see that the skills we provide to the young people in the army cadets can have such a positive impact in the local community.
"The way that Jason, at such a young age, was able to take command of a difficult situation is a credit to him."
Jason earned his St Johns Ambulance Young Lifesaver Plus first aid badge after the weekend course. As a result of his heroics, his detachment is meanwhile putting him forward for a special award.
