Dion Costigan, 51, couldn’t believe his bad luck when he had a heart attack in November, just over two years after surviving a stroke.
But there was one thing that made him feel more at ease – the same paramedic coincidentally attending both calls for help.
Ambulance Victoria (AV) paramedic Laura Schirato has been based in Bendigo for almost 10 years, but she said attending to Dion twice was unusual.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been back to anyone twice in such a short amount of time and especially for two things so medically significant,” she said.
Dion experienced a stroke at his home in Huntly in July 2022 and began experiencing heart attack symptoms while driving in November last year. He made it home safely and called an ambulance.
“What gave Dion the best chance of survival on both occasions was early recognition of his symptoms,” Laura said.
“When he had a stroke, his wife noticed his speech wasn’t making sense and made the crucial decision to immediately call Triple Zero (000).
“More recently, Dion recognised he was experiencing significant chest pain, and while we would have urged him to immediately pull over and call for an ambulance, he did call for help as soon as he arrived back home.
“Both times, this action meant Dion had access to advanced clinical care as quickly as possible, giving him the best chance of survival and recovery.”
F.A.S.T. signs of stroke account for 80 per cent of stroke symptoms, and getting F.A.S.T. treatment for stroke can be the difference between death, disability, and a good recovery.
- F IS FOR FACE: Check their FACE. Has their mouth drooped?
- A IS FOR ARMS: Can they lift both ARMS?
- S IS FOR SPEECH: Is their SPEECH slurred? Do they understand you?
- T IS FOR TIME: TIME is critical. If you see any of these signs, call 000 immediately.
Symptoms of a heart attack can include pain in your chest, arm, shoulder, back, neck or jaw, as well as shortness of breath, dizziness, sweating, nausea or extreme fatigue.
Dion said he remembers Laura attending when he had a stroke.
“Even though I didn’t understand a lot at the time, I remember seeing Laura,” Dion said.
“When I had my heart attack, the ambulance arrived and I was laying on my back on my bed, no more than two metres from where I’d been when I had the stroke.
“Laura had a facemask on, but I looked her in the eye and said ‘I know you, you were at my stroke’, and she said ‘yes, that’s right’.”
Dion said the familiar face made him feel reassured during a stressful time.
For Laura, it was also a special moment.
“I was surprised that he would recognise me, because I had a facemask on but also considering the pain that he was in,” she said.
“It’s an amazing feeling that just me walking into a room could make him feel reassured and maybe that things are going to be alright or at least feel more comfortable.”
This week, Dion and Laura were able to reunite, and Laura said it was incredible to see him under better circumstances.
“It was a bit emotional to see him,” Laura said.
“He’s only a young man, so it means everything to see him well and healthy and to be able to have a conversation with him that’s not me telling him that something medically significant is going on.”
Dion has been open about his battle with depression since his stroke and is now an advocate for men’s mental and physical health.
“The stroke has caused me all sorts of mental health issues, some [of] which I’m through now but others that will be with me forever,” Dion said.
“When I had the heart attack, I thought ‘I’m not going to let this beat me’.
“If the unfortunate situation of me having two serious health incidents saves people’s lives because the story is powerful enough to make people look after themselves and recognise their symptoms, that’s the most important thing.”
