Nurse Saves 90-Year-Old Choking at Costco Near Christmas

Emily Lebsack was picking up ingredients for holiday cookies at a San Leandro Costco when she saw something that made her heart skip. A woman in the freezer section had turned white as a sheet, lips already blue, choking and seconds from losing consciousness.

Lebsack, a postpartum nurse at Sutter Health's Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, didn't hesitate. She performed one strong abdominal thrust, clearing the woman's airway just in time.

"All of my training kicked into place," Lebsack recalled. She directed someone to call 911 as she and another bystander lowered the woman to the ground.

After one chest compression and rolling her to the side, the woman's hands started moving. Color returned to her face as she began breathing normally again.

Lebsack stayed by her side until paramedics arrived, keeping her calm and alert. She explained what had happened and made sure the woman understood she was safe.

In a touching twist, this was Lebsack's first time using her nursing skills to save a life in public. At 90 years old, the woman she rescued became her oldest patient ever.

"As nurses, we're ready to step in when needed," Lebsack said. She credits her assessment training for helping her recognize the signs immediately and act without thinking twice.

Brian Centoni, the Alameda County Fire Department captain who responded, was grateful to arrive and find an alert patient already thanking her rescuer. He reached out afterward to express his appreciation for Lebsack's off-duty service.

Sunny's Take

Lebsack's manager at the Family Care Center highlighted how her actions showed excellence and compassion extending beyond the hospital walls. In her day job, Lebsack cares for newborns, helps with C-sections, and supports families during those precious first moments of life.

She's modest about the rescue, noting that her amazing nursing colleagues would have done the same thing. "I do think that we show up for our neighbors and our communities, which is really a beautiful thing," she said.

After her heroic Costco run, Lebsack went home and finished her ambitious cookie project: brown butter toffee chocolate chip cookies, cream pies, sugar cookies, and hot chocolate stirs. Though she admits it was "a lot" and might take a few years off from such elaborate baking.

The local community can rest easy knowing nurses like Lebsack are shopping alongside them, ready to jump in when it matters most.