WASHINGTON COUNTY, Utah — A school resource officer in Utah is credited with providing lifesaving, emergency medical care to a middle school student while at work, and then an baby on the way home.

According to a press release from the Washington County School District, around 2 p.m. Tuesday a student at Dixie Middle School reported to her gym teacher she wasn’t feeling well.

The teacher sent the student to the school nurse, where officer Matt Schuman waited with her. During that time, the student displayed flu-like symptoms and vomited.  It was agreed that an ambulance should be called to evaluate the student.  Prior to the arrival of the ambulance, the girl collapsed and began seizure-like activity.

After the seizure, the student went into cardiac arrest, did not have a pulse and was not breathing. Schuman and a local parent who was at the school for unrelated reasons, Denim Lyman, began CPR on the student, and eventually the student was revived.

A short time later, the student again went into cardiac arrest and Schuman continued CPR until EMTs arrived at the scene. Responders used a defibrillator to restart the heart, and the student was taken to Dixie Regional Medical Center and then flown to Las Vegas via LifeFlight.

The release from the school district states: “It is due to the heroic efforts and proficient training that we “Thank” Officer Schuman for his quick thinking and fast response. We appreciate our partnership with the SROs in Washington County School District and thank the local police agencies for their unfailing dedication in keeping our students and staff safe within boundaries of our learning environments. Our heartfelt thanks goes out to officer Schumann for his outstanding performance.”

But Schuman's eventful day was only beginning. The press release states that later in the day Schuman was heading home after working at a school wrestling match when he heard a dispatch call regarding a 9-day-old infant who was choking.

Schuman recognized he was only a few homes away from the scene, so he responded to the call and began working to remove the obstruction from the child’s airway. The release states, “He was successful in saving this child’s life as EMTs arrived and continued care.”

Were it not for officer Schuman's willingness to act and his emergency preparedness, these incidents could have had much more grave outcomes.  These skills of CPR, relief of choking and AED use are basic lifesaving skills that can, and should be learned by everyone in the community.  

We salute you, officer Schuman!