Australian musician and actor Murray Cook has broken his silence on his band mate Greg Page’s condition. He praised the heroic efforts of a nurse who saved him after Page suffered a cardiac arrest on stage.
Page, 48, collapsed on stage at the Castle Hill RSL in Sydney. Before the paramedics arrived, he was revived with a defibrillator by an off-duty nurse Grace Jones. He was rushed to Westmead Hospital.
Cook praised her actions for saving his band mate’s life. He told The Daily Telegraph, “We were just totally shocked when it happened. The nurse was only 23, I’ve got kids that age, she’s really impressive.”
“It’s been very difficult for me and for the rest of us going through this, but seeing him today in the hospital, he’s in really good spirits and that has made it a lot easier,” he continued.
Jones said she was just doing what she received from her training after approaching the stage to offer medical assistance to Page.
She said, “They shut the curtains and one of them said he wasn’t well – so I went and asked the security guard if they needed any medical assistance and they said yes, so I went up and when I walked around the curtain he looked really unwell and he wasn’t breathing.”
The nurse said Page was already receiving CPR from two bystander – band’s drummer Steve Pace and crewmember Kimmy Antonelli – but she was able to take charge of the situation with the help of her expert training.
“I just went in and did a little bit of CPR and then someone handed me the defibrillator that I’m assuming they have at the RSL,” she added. “I got someone else to take over CPR and I attached the defibrillator and we shocked him.”
Page was then rushed to the hospital when paramedics arrived. He has been recovering after undergoing angioplasty.
On Saturday, Page posted a photo on The Wiggles Instagram account, giving the thumbs up from his hospital bed.
Paramedics also praised the efforts of two bystanders, stating that their quick response to the situation saved Page’s life. Page’s cardiac arrest was likely caused by his orthostatic intolerance, a rare nervous system condition, that he was diagnosed with almost 10 years ago, which forced him to initially quit The Wiggles in 2006.
