- Natalie Davies was getting ready to enjoy her spring break in New Orleans.
- The nursing student had just submitted a paper on the importance of CPR training.
Just 12 hours before boarding her flight at John F. Kennedy's International Airport, a Connecticut nursing student submitted a paper on the importance of CPR training for the general public.
"Twelve hours later, I was administering CPR in a public setting. In this case, there were a couple of us right there who knew what to do. It's important for everyone to learn how to administer CPR when needed," Natalie Davies said in a Sacred Heart University press release.
Davies, a senior nursing student at the school, was waiting for her flight to New Orleans when she said she heard a scream. By the time she turned around, a man had collapsed, prompting her to spring into action and administer CPR, the release said.
The man had no pulse, and Davies began CPR compressions. Another passenger, who happened to be a cardiologist, also came over to help revive the man. The cardiologist used an automated external defibrillator (AED) to help bring the man's pulse back, according to the school.
The school didn't offer more information on who the man was or what may have led to his pulse stopping. Davies didn't respond to Insider's request for comment.
Davies said the incident was "the first time" she felt like a "real nurse."
"I didn't think: I just knew what to do and concentrated on the patient. I wasn't even aware people were watching until after EMS arrived," she said in the release.
It took three rounds of this before the man's pulse returned, but he was awake and talking by the time EMS arrived, the press release said.
After graduating, the senior nursing student plans to join Yale New Haven's Emergency Department as a critical care registered nurse.