(L-R) Pam Gibson, Lena and Len Wirachowsky at a Wednesday, May 14 Vital Link Award presentation in Nanaimo. (Alex Rawnsley/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

heart attack response

Nanaimo woman’s calm demeanour helped save husband’s life

May 14, 2025 | 1:22 PM

NANAIMO — Beyond what she had seen on TV, a Nanaimo woman wasn’t sure what to do upon realizing her husband was unresponsive in bed.

Lena Wirachowsky received a Vital Link Award from BC Emergency Health Services at a ceremony in Nanaimo following her life-saving actions on the evening of March 26, 2023.

Wirachowsky heard gurgling noises from her husband Len as they were sleeping, and when she couldn’t get him to wake up, she called 911.

Emergency dispatcher Pam Gibson was on the other end, who told Wirachowsky to get him off the bed and on the floor to start chest compressions.

“The number one priority is trying to get them to follow our instructions, trying to get them to do ‘hands on chest’ and doing that CPR, because that’s what’s going to buy time until first responders get there,” Gibson told NanaimoNewsNOW at a Wednesday, May 14 Vital Link Award recognition ceremony.

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“It’s also crucial for the callers to remain as calm as possible,” Gibson said.

Emphasizing the importance of chest compressions to help release oxygen to the brain during a cardiac event, Gibson credited Wirachowsky for her life-saving actions under stressful circumstances.

“She did fantastic,” Gibson said. “She followed every instruction, she did not hesitate, and you could just tell her determination to help her husband was just amazing.”

Gibson, a former paramedic with 20 years’ experience as an emergency dispatcher, said their job is to clearly guide callers equipped with a varying range of life-saving abilities.

“Even if you have the training, sometimes when you’re in a stressful situation, you can forget to know exactly what to do. We acknowledge that they do have the training and just let them know that we are still there to help them get through the process.”

The Vital Link Award represents the actions people take to help save a life.

“We don’t know that we would have survivability in this case,” Gibson said candidly.

Wirachowsky and her husband attended the Vital Link Award ceremony at the BC Ambulance Service station on Prideaux St., where they had the opportunity to thank Gibson in person.

Wirachowsky (R) personally thanks Gibson for guiding her through a life-saving 911 call. (Alex Rawnsley/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Conceding she wasn’t sure what to do, Wirachowsky said Gibson provided clear step-by-step instructions.

“It was basically Pam’s instruction…she was counting with me the whole time…she counted ‘one-two-three four’ and we just repeated, repeated until the paramedics got there,” Wirachowsky said, who did chest compressions for several minutes.

“I’ve never been in a situation where I’ve needed to do that type of thing…It just all worked out.”

Specialists don’t know what caused Len’s heart attack, while he has no memory of what happened, and is now outfitted with a pacemaker and defibrillator.

The retired couple, both originally from Saskatchewan, have been married for the past decade.

“I kept running and she caught me,” Len remarked.

“And you should be happy I did,” Wirachowsky astutely countered with a laugh.

-with files from Alex Rawnsley

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The Wirachowskys and the two paramedics who responded on the evening of March 26, 2023 (Alex Rawnsley/NanaimoNewsNOW)