Live Life One Day at a Time

On February 20th, the George Brown Huskies men's basketball team had an onsite CPR training session just before their practice.

Gayle Pollock, Toronto EMS, demonstrates how to use a defibrillator

What prompted these basketball players to learn CPR?

George Brown Huskies attend CPR training on Feb. 20, 2014

On August 29, 2013, 23-year-old Dwayne Harrison, an impact player on the George Brown team, collapsed in cardiac arrest while playing a pick-up basketball game at the Lawrence Heights Community Centre. The facility custodian, Ted Rennie, quickly got an onsite defibrillator and started CPR. That is, no doubt, why Dwayne is alive today with no residual effects from this incident.

Dwayne Harrison

I had the opportunity to discuss the impact of this incident with Dwayne, his girlfriend, Monika Smith, and his basketball coach, Jonathan Smith [no relation to Monika]. One consistent theme emerged in my conversation with each of them: Live one day at a time.

Monika was on vacation in Jamaica at the time that Dwayne collapsed. She returned to Toronto the following day. On the way from the airport, her mom informed her that Dwayne was in hospital and she needed to go directly to the hospital to visit him. Dwayne was in a medically induced coma at this point.

Monika's initial questions were:
"How long was he out for?"
"If he comes back to me, is he going to come back the same person? Is he going to remember who I am? Is he going to be able to function?"

Happily, Dwayne is the same person that he was before his cardiac incident.

Question: Has your relationship with Dwayne changed or transitioned in any way since that incident?

Answer: For both of us, we are both very grateful for life. Even though it was his experience, it affected a lot of people around him. We are very more appreciative of time, things we do and what we say. Picking our battles is one of those things where we really have to think if it's worth it. We don't have time to waste on certain stuff. We could be doing something positive or something bigger than that. Never go to bed being angry.

Jonathan Smith, George Brown Huskies men's basketball coach

Coach Smith informed me that 15 of the team's 17 members attended the CPR training. The other 2 were unable to do so. Dwayne's health incident had a huge impact on him too.

Dwayne was an assistant coach this year since he has not yet been cleared to play inter school sports since he has not yet been cleared medically. Coach said that Dwayne is a perfect example of "you never know what's going to happen so play every game as if it's your last."

Every time that he sees Dwayne, it's emotional. He sees him jumping around now and he remembers the young man who was lying in bed with tubes in him with his body at 33 degrees [Celsius]. Every time that he sees him, he sees a miracle. He's thankful for where Dwayne is now.


Question: Dwayne, what do you remember about August 29th?

Answer: The last thing that I remember was getting a text to come and play basketball. I went, showed up, … I watched some little kids playing a game before us. I remembered hanging with him [close friend] then I woke up in hospital.

Question: What impact did that health crisis/incident have on your mom, on Monika, on coach and on your teammates.

Answer: Devastating impact. I'm my mother's first child. It was really hard for her. That was really hard for her. Coach is like a father figure for me. I look up to him. It probably hurt him really bad. Monika, she loves me to death so I know that probably had a real effect on her. I had a lot of support that I didn't even know that I had until the incident.

Question: How has your life changed since that day?

Answer: No basketball.

Question: Why can't you play basketball any more? Is it one of the limitations that you have now?

Answer: Because of what happened. They don't know why it happened, how it happened or if it will ever happen again so it's a question mark. I'm one of the rare cases where I left the hospital a week later like nothing happened. I passed the stress test. I did an ultrasound. Everything [about his heart] was normal.

Basketball was what got me in school. Basketball was that ingredient that just kept me focused, level headed and grounded. Without basketball, everything is kind of hard and I have to restructure my schedule, think differently, focus more on school. Basketball was a big part of my life.

He helps coach the George Brown team and was a community coach for Scarlet Heights' basketball team for a school placement. Dwayne is back playing basketball competitively; just not for George Brown's team.

Question: How has your perspective changed since that day?

Answer: You never know when life is going to end. You never know if anything is going to happen to you. From this point on, I have to live every day almost like it's my last. Take the opportunities that are there. Enjoy the little things and moments with everybody in my life; friends and family.