A MUM-OF-TWO has been reunited with the ambulance staff who saved her life after she suffered a cardiac arrest.

Anne-Marie Saffer had just returned home from a shopping trip when her heart rhythms suddenly became irregular, causing her to lose consciousness.

The 59-year-old had no history of heart problems and was not taking any medication at the time of the incident at her home in Windermere Drive, Bury.

Her 24-year-old son, Joshua Whelan, jumped into action and called on the next door neighbour for help.

Ms Saffer said: “Our 82-year-old neighbour is thankfully a retired nurse —she performed CPR, then called for the ambulance service.

“My son later told me he thought I was out for 40 minutes. He said I was going blue.

“To see his mum like that was somewhat traumatic for him.”

A total of four staff and one student paramedic from the North West Ambulance Service, and members of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, were dispatched to the home.

Senior paramedic team leaders for Bury, Keith Norton and Scott Garrity, were first on the scene with student paramedic Isobel Sproson.

Mr Norton, who has been a paramedic for 40 years, said: “We got the equipment out and began CPR immediately.

“We protected the airways and worked in tandem. We were more efficient because we had Isobel with us.

“It was around 15 minutes before we got an output.”

It was 21-year-old Isobel’s first day on the job, as part of her Paramedic Practice course at the University of Central Lancaster (UCLAN).

She said: “It was quite daunting at first. I had never carried out CPR before.

“But I’m glad I was thrown into it because you learn so much.

“It is so rewarding to be able to meet Anne-Marie one year on.”

Paul Newns and Julia Grimshaw also responded to the incident, and all five members of NWAS staff were reunited with the patient at Bury Ambulance Station yesterday.

Ms Saffer was taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary following the incident on November 7 last year.

She was in a coma for five weeks and had to have a stent fitted. She was informed the cardiac arrest had been sparked by a blocked artery.

Ms Saffer said: “I don’t remember waking up in hospital.

“A year on I am okay but still feeling some of the effects. I have lost part of my memory, particularly from the weeks just before the cardiac arrest.

“I am just so thankful for everything the ambulance staff did. The team was amazing.

“They saved my life.”