May 20, 2011

Durham College alumni Ryan Chomiszak, recent Paramedics graduate, was recently honoured at a small ceremony to recognize the donation of an automated external defibrillator (AED) to the new Student Services building at the Oshawa campus on April 21.

Installed when the building first opened in January, the AED is located on the second floor near the elevator. College representatives, including Judy Robinson, vice-president, Academic also attended the ceremony, as well as Aaron Putman, territory manager for ROXON medi-tech, whose company made the donation.

Chomiszak and fellow Paramedic alumni Dustin Petherick, who both graduated in June 2010, were originally awarded the AED for winning the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation’s You Can Save a Life Video Awareness Contest in July 2010 with their video titled 9-1-1 Emergency ROCKsponse.

The students who both enjoy using humour as an educational tool, made their video about cardiac arrest protocols as a way to showcase what they had learned in their two years of schooling at their year-end banquet. However, the overwhelming response from their classmates resulted in the video being posted on YouTube to be used as a study guide.

“Nothing could have prepared me for the response I have gotten,” said Chomiszak. “I get emails from people around the world everyday ranging from ‘Can I use your video as a teaching aid in my class?’ to ‘We use your video as a paramedic games anthem in Romania’ and ‘I can’t believe you were able to hit everything on a scenario-based call sheet and make it all rhyme, this is going to help me study!’ “.

Released during National Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Week in May 2010, the video’s popularly skyrocketed, receiving more than 225,000 views to date. It was then that Chomiszak and Petherick decided to enter the You Can Save a Life Video Awareness Contest on a whim and ended up winning first prize.

The contest was designed to raise awareness about the impact of cardiac arrest and the importance of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and AED’s.

While the subject matter and procedures displayed in the video are very serious, Chomiszak said he wanted to have fun with it so people could enjoy themselves while learning.