A new program launched by Orange County Fire Rescue recently saved the life of a 47-year-old mother of six.
On Tuesday, April 9, Lori McMinn and her husband were traveling in their vehicle to get dinner in the Waterford Lakes area when they were involved in a serious crash.
An Orange County Fire Rescue captain quickly arrived on scene and determined that McMinn had sustained “traumatic internal injuries.” As a result, she was in need of a blood transfusion, according to OCFR.
Paramedics transported McMinn to Orlando Regional Medical Center. Thanks to OCFR’s new Pre-hospital Whole Blood Program, she had already received her first unit of whole blood by the time she arrived at the hospital.
The lifesaving initiative, which was launched on March 21, allows EMS crews to provide blood transfusions to trauma patients in the field, prior to hospital arrival.
OCFR stated that McMinn’s chances of survival “drastically increased” when she received the blood transfusion while en route to the hospital.
On Thursday, April 18, McMinn reunited with the first responders that saved her life by administering a blood transfusion at the scene of the car crash.
“Thank you to our partners Orlando Health and OneBlood for joining us this morning,” stated OCFR in a social media post on Thursday. “We said that this program would save lives- and we are happy to announce that it is.”