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On a December morning, Spencer Stevenson faced a life-threatening situation when he suffered a sudden cardiac arrest right after disembarking from his train. As he reached the top of the stairs, he felt dizzy and managed to get down on one knee before losing consciousness. Fortunately, he was in a place where help was immediately available.
Hollie Page, a cardiac physiologist working at Bart’s Hospital, happened to notice Spencer lying unconscious on the concourse of Liverpool Street station. Alongside several passers-by, she quickly sprang into action, performing chest compressions and using a public defibrillator to restart his heart. Thanks to their prompt response, Spencer was revived and is now fully recovered.
Reflecting on the experience, Stevenson expressed deep gratitude for Hollie’s intervention. “I got to the top of the stairs and felt a bit dizzy. I remember thinking I’m going to fall over. I got onto one knee and then, that was it, I don’t remember anything else,” he said. He added, “I’m so lucky to have Hollie there, who knew what she was doing, and the defibrillator on hand, that I’ve come out of it virtually unscathed…it’s crazy.” Hollie described the moments after finding him: “He had no pulse. Three other people were already helping. We all went straight into resus [resuscitation] mode. CPR is a big part of the work I do. You go into autopilot. Your training kicks in.”
After administering four rounds of CPR and delivering two shocks, Spencer regained consciousness and began speaking. “We got a return of spontaneous circulation,” Hollie recalled. “It was an incredible moment.” Following the incident, she headed to work while Spencer was taken to the Royal London Hospital, remaining awake and well enough to call his wife from the ambulance. Both Spencer and Hollie spoke to the BBC about the emotional impact of the event. Spencer admitted words were “too small to express how massively grateful” he was, while Hollie said, “It’s always a strange feeling…but it does really make you feel like what you’ve done has been worthwhile and you really have made a difference.”
The incident highlights the critical importance of timely intervention in cardiac arrests, which according to NHS England, have a survival rate of less than 10% outside hospital settings. Inspired by his experience, Stevenson is now advocating for the wider availability of defibrillators in public locations. He urged building managers to ensure automated external defibrillators (AEDs) are installed and that staff know their locations, emphasizing, “You might save someone’s life.” Hollie also encourages more people to acquire resuscitation skills, recommending first aid training and online resources to empower individuals with potentially lifesaving knowledge
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