Watching TV helped Borderland boy save best friend’s life

Television medical dramas have long been a hit among viewers. The shows are entertaining to watch, but are they educational?

The answer is yes for one Las Cruces elementary student who used what he learned during an episode of “Chicago Med” to save the life of his best friend.

The real life drama played out during lunch at Highland Elementary.

Max Miller and his best friend Josiah Barrera are fifth-graders who like to bring their lunch to school and almost always share a table.

LINK: How to perform the Heimlich maneuver

LINK: Mayo Clinic’s first aid tips

But late last year, something happened in the cafeteria that would test the resolve of one boy and most likely seal the friendship forever.

“We were talking and someone across from us started to tell a joke, and we were laughing. And while I was laughing, I was eating, so I inhaled it,” Miller said.

In a matter of seconds, Max was choking on a vegetable wrap.

“He started coughing a lot. He went like this (grabbed his neck with both hands). And then his face started to turn red,” Barrera said.

What happened next would earn Josiah medals, media attention and the admiration of students and teachers alike.

Josiah said his best friend grabbed his throat indicating he was choking. In a split second, Josiah jumped up, ran behind his best friend and performed the Heimlich maneuver.

It worked. Max spit out the vegetable wrap and was able to breathe again.

“I watched a show before, “Chicago Med”, and they were in a bar. Someone started choking and there were doctors in the bar and they did the Heimlich maneuver on him,” Barrera said.

The news quickly spread to assistant principal Pat Christensen.

“I think it was very good that he reacted like he did because as the boy stated there might not have been enough time if he had to come all the way to the office to get the school nurse or somebody like that. So, it was very handy that he did that,” Christensen said.

But can we really trust the lifesaving techniques we see on television medical dramas to work in an emergency?

Dr. Delores Gomez, the chief medical officer at Memorial Medical Center, has watched her fair share of television actors recreating the work she and her co-employees do on a daily basis.

“I think him learning that from the TV is very possible. But ideally the goal would be to get somewhere where they offer programs to teach you some of those lifesaving maneuvers to insure that you are doing things correctly,” Dr. Gomez said.

Many hospitals and organizations offer free first aid classes for people of all ages.

Dr. Gomez pointed out it’s important for people to know the warning signs of other life-threatening situations.

“It may not be you have to do anything, but just being able to recognize the signs that somebody may be having a heart attack or a stroke, and getting them as quickly as possible to the hospital.” Gomez said.

Max is incredibly thankful to Josiah for saving his life.

“I was like, I was flipping out. I was like, ‘thank you so much,’ said Miller.

Ever since that close call in the cafeteria, there has been plenty of media attention and instant fame at school for the two boys.

What has not changed is their friendship. They are still sharing a table at lunch, still shooting hoops at recess and still surprised by their own medical drama that played out in real life.