Kent Police officer helps save woman’s life

Kent Police officer Jeff Kluzak will receive a life-saving medal next month from Chief Ken Thomas after Kluzak’s recent efforts to help save the life of a 73-year-old woman who had no pulse.

Kluzak, a five-year veteran with the department, responded to a 911 call early in the evening July 29 for help involving a medical incident with a Kent woman, according to a Kent Police media release.

Kluzak was the first emergency responder at the scene. He grabbed his Automated External Defibrillator (AED) from his patrol vehicle. He went inside the home and determined the woman’s condition to be critical. She had no pulse, struggled to breathe and her skin color began to turn blue.

The officer applied the AED to the patient and within seconds he was advised by the device to shock her.

After the shock deployment, Kluzak began CPR efforts and successfully revived her. Kent Fire Department personnel then arrived and took over primary medical care. The patient’s condition stabilized and paramedics transported her to a nearby hospital for further treatment.

After her release a week later from the hospital, the woman said, “The doctor’s told me I was dead, but that officer saved my life.”

The AED automatically diagnoses potentially life threatening cardiac arrhythmias in a patient, and if necessary treats them through the application of electrical therapy stopping the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to reestablish an effective rhythm, as was the case during this incident.

Kent began issuing AED’s to its officers in 2010 and has since documented numerous life-saving efforts as a result of the devices.

“It is instances such as this that give true meaning and define what it is to be a police officer,” said Kent Police spokeswoman Melanie Frazier.

Thomas will present Kluzak with the life-saving medal at the Tuesday, Sept. 17 Kent City Council meeting at City Hall. Kluzak already has one life-saving award from the department.