A licensee and her chef have been hailed as heroes by the ambulance service after helping save an 81-year-old woman from choking to death.

Marie Vaillant and chef Patrick Beck, of the Griffin Hotel, Toddington, Bedfordshire worked together to remove a piece a gammon which had become lodged in the woman’s throat.

Patrick performed the Heimlich manoeuvre on the customer 10 times, until eventually Marie lifted out the two centimetre piece of meat.

Marie, a tenant at the Greene King pub, said: “It was really lucky that Patrick was here. He just jumped in and used his first aid skills to save the woman.
“She was quite frail, and had turned blue from lack of oxygen, so we had to be careful not to bruise her.”

Marie, who is also trained in first aid, added: “The ambulance service came within five minutes, I was really impressed. But luckily the woman did not even have to go to hospital. She was quite embarrassed though.”
Just two days after the incident Marie and Patrick both received commendations from the ambulance service for their actions.

Gary Sanderson, a spokesman for the ambulance service, said: “The quick thinking and rapid interventions by Marie and Patrick has no doubt saved this woman’s life. They must be very proud of themselves – well done.”

Source: The Publican

Suzi Says…

There is no doubt about it, First Aiders save lives. As this story prooves, it’s not just Fonr-of-House staff that it is important to train. Any employees can be called upon to help a customer with any number of problems.

Ensure that your staff are ready, trained and confident in what to do. Call us for First Aid training 020 7237 6007.