Bystander CPR helps save the life of Melbourne mother-of-two

January 10, 2025 | in News

Two onlookers have been praised for saving the life of a Melbourne mother-of-two in cardiac arrest.

Justen Petch and Stacey Earsman have been hailed as heroes by Ambulance Victoria (AV) paramedics, for performing life-saving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) when Kellie Delaney suffered a cardiac arrest on a West Footscray footpath.

Justen said it feels overwhelming to have helped keep Kellie alive and able to return to her family.

“It really hit home when we were trying to get her contact details and you open up her wallet to look for licences and there’s a photo of her two children,” he said.

“To have been able to do something that meaningful is phenomenal.”

Justen, a sessional academic, had only met Kellie the day before the medical emergency on 23 June 2024, in his role as her mentor for a placement as part of her early-childhood education studies.

Justen had just wrapped up a teaching session when he noticed Kellie had collapsed.

“We had a good day and I remember that Kellie in particular was a really engaged, thoughtful student and remember thinking this person really gets it,” he recollected.

“I’d literally just finished congratulating the students on a job well done and let them know we were wrapping up, when I turned around and saw Kellie was on the ground.”

Justen immediately realised something was wrong and called Triple Zero (000), then commenced CPR.

This was when Stacey came into the picture – the owner of a nearby café.

“My business partner came into our café and asked if anyone in West Footscray had a defibrillator – so I knew that obviously something was wrong,” Stacey said.

“I ran outside and saw Justen performing CPR and he looked exhausted, so I took over.”

Soon after, Advanced Life Support (ALS) and Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance (MICA) paramedics arrived and be delivered Kellie a shock from a defibrillator, achieving a return of spontaneous circulation.

Kellie was rushed to hospital where she spent just over two weeks before being discharged home to her family.

In January, Kellie was able to reunite with those who cared for her, which AV paramedic Mark Lunn said was an opportunity to celebrate Justen and Stacey for their quick actions.

“It’s always very brave to step in in those circumstances which are horrifying for all the bystanders,” he said.

“For them to have the courage to step up and do what they did certainly benefitted the efforts to save Kellie’s life.

“We call on all Victorians to learn what to do if someone around them suffers a cardiac arrest.

“Anyone can save a life in three simple steps: Call (call Triple Zero (000)), Push (perform CPR), Shock (use an AED).”

Stacey said 23 years of CPR and first aid training through her work as a flight attendant made her feel confident to help Kellie.

“I just instantly knew what to do – I didn’t think twice,” she said.

“When I found out she had survived, it was the best news ever because I knew she had children and a family and it was really sad when she went to hospital that we didn’t know whether she would survive.

“It’s great to know that Justen and I were able to help save someone’s life.”

Despite having undertaken annual CPR training for his work, Justen said he was unsure how he would react if ever faced with a medical emergency.

“I’m happy to say that I was surprisingly calm,” he said.

“I surprised myself with how well I was able to keep the situation under some level of control, while doing CPR and calmly asking students to find a defib if they could.

“It’s almost eery to think back on because it was such a high stress situation, and I came out of it once I was back home feeling very tired and very upset.

“To know Kellie is home with her family and to be able to see her again, it means that we have been able to do something extraordinary for someone.”

Kellie said it was hard to put into words her thanks to everyone who saved her life.

“I’m so thankful that they were there and were able to do what they did for me,” she said.

“It’s thanks to them that I’m able to be here for my kids and my husband going forward.

“My whole family are forever grateful to them – I had my guardian angels looking after me.”

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