Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Joshua Blanchard, assigned to U.S. Naval Hospital (USNH) Yokosuka, was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal for saving a drowning mother while serving on temporary assigned duty (TAD) at the Surface Warfare Medical Institute (SWMI) in San Diego.

USNH Yokosuka Commanding Officer, Capt. Rosemary C. Malone, had the honor of presenting the award to Blanchard after returning back to Japan.

"It's pretty surreal," said Blanchard. "I wasn't expecting any recognition. I wasn't aware that this was going to happen, but it is definitely an honor to receive this award."

On Aug. 16, Blanchard, a native of Wilmington, North Carolina, responded to a call for help from two school-age children who initially approached the receptionist desk.

"I was sitting in the lobby waiting for classmates to go out on liberty at about 1930 (7:30 p.m.)," said Blanchard. "Due to the time of day, I couldn't see what was going on outside so I went over to the door. There was yelling and screaming, and that's when I saw people standing around what was a saltwater pool. I ran out to the pool and after focusing for a few seconds, I could see that there was a person lying at the bottom."

The person at the bottom of the 8-foot-deep pool was an unconscious mother of two children who were present.

With little concern for his own well-being, Blanchard jumped into the deep end of the pool and brought her to surface with the assistance of a couple of bystanders. Taking charge of the scene, he instructed everyone surrounding the drowning victim to provide sufficient space to begin medical attention. He quickly assessed the woman's carotid artery, whereas he was unable to feel a pulse.

Emergency response was initiated by a bystander as Blanchard immediately began administering CPR to the victim. After approximately 20 minutes of CPR, vomitus began to come from the woman's mouth. After reassessing, Blanchard was able to feel a weak carotid pulse before the arrival of paramedics and police officers.

Once the paramedics took control of the situation, Blanchard provided a voluntary statement to the police, then immediately consoled the victim's 6-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son.

Three days after the incident, Blanchard approached the hotel's manager about the victim in question. The manager informed him that the woman had survived, was in treatment at a local hospital and family members were able to come to San Diego to care for her two children while she was recovering.

Blanchard attributed his response ability to paying attention to detail in Basic Life Support (BLS) class, which is held annually for all medical professionals.

"I think we all prepare for it and never really expect for something like this to happen," said Blanchard.

For more information, visit http://www.navy.mil, http://www.facebook.com/usnavy, or http://www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from U.S. Naval Hospital Yokosuka, visit http://www.navy.mil/.