Remaking the revered British sitcom The Office in an American setting didn't seem like a particularly good idea to fans at the time, but the US version of the show soon found its footing and gave us dozens of hilarious episodes over its nine-season run.
One of the best episodes is Stress Relief, which sees Michael Scott (Steve Carell), trying to find ways to lower tensions in the office after one outrageous fire drill stunt by Dwight sends Stanley to the hospital. His first idea is to have a CPR training session for his employees, but the tutorial quickly goes off the rails.
Before it does, the instructor shows them the technique of applying chest compressions to the same tempo as the Bee Gees hit song Stayin' Alive (103 beats per minute). While it might have just been a set up for a series of jokes in the hilarious scene, it's managed to have a serious impact on the world - 10 years later.
Cross Scott, a 21-year-old technician from Arizona, recently spotted a woman slumped behind the sterring wheel of her car. According to the Arizona Daily Star, he quickly jumped into action, smashing through the window of the car (which was still running) to get to the woman, whose lips had already begun turning blue.
Scott wasn't trained in first aid whatsoever, but he cast his mind back to another, fictional, Scott, and managed to save her life.
Within a minute of administering CPR, the woman began breathing again. She immediately vomited, so Scott rolled her on her side, waiting with her until the emergency services arrived and took her to hospital.
He was told by paramedic that she would have been in a much worse state if he hadn't stepped in, but he insists he shouldn't take all the credit - adding that two other women helped her and called 911. Soon afterwards, Cross was reunited with the woman whose life he had saved, and she thanked him for all his help.
"I've never prepared myself for CPR in my life, I had no idea what I was doing," Scott said afterward, which is, funnily enough, very close to Michael Scott's words from the same episode: "I knew exactly what to do, but in a much more real sense, I had no idea what to do."
Executive director of the Red Cross Southern Arizona chapter, Courtney Slanaker, spoke to the Daily Star about the particular method, confirming that the song is the correct rhythm for chest compressions. "If you don’t do CPR, that victim will die," she said. "Don’t be afraid to act, whatever you do will help that victim and hopefully prevent a death."
Either way - if you're in a situation where you can do the same as Scott, just remember the rhythm of that song like he did, and you may end up being the difference between life and death.
