Applewood Dining Employee Saves Choking Senior

The senior resident stood up from the table and realized the piece of food was lodged midway in her throat.

Her dining companions quickly called for help and Dining Services manager Norma Dorer was first on the scene.

“Since I work in the dining industry, I felt it was important to know how to perform the Heimlich maneuver,” says Norma, who has been on staff at Applewood since 2015.

“I bought a book to learn how to safely perform it, but had never done so in an actual choking situation.”

Norma first asked the resident to acknowledge she was, in fact, choking.

Once confirmed, she performed two Heimlich thrusts and the food was immediately dislodged.

An ambulance had been called prior to Norma’s heroic actions but was not needed due to the resident’s prompt and successful recovery.

CentraState Healthcare System Honors Norma’s Lifesaving Effort

Norma, who is also certified in CPR, was presented with a Super CentraStar award which recognizes employees who perform in an exemplary manner to ensure patient/resident/employee safety or outstanding customer experience.

Thomas W. Scott, CentraState COO, and Frances Keane, vice president of Human Resources, presented her with a certificate, award prize and flowers during this week’s monthly Resident Meeting. CEO John T. Gribbin was also in attendance to acknowledge Norma’s lifesaving action.

Watch the CentraState Super CentraStar award presentation.

When asked to speak to the group of more than 100 residents, Norma said, “I’m not a hero, honestly, but I love all of you and would do the same for any of you,” she said.

“I thank you all very much for this recognition, but it’s just part of my job.”

“Norma quickly became an invaluable part of our dining team and I can’t express how much we appreciate her every single day,” said Heath Braunstein, director of Dining Services and Norma’s supervisor.

“To honor her for a truly heroic effort comes as no surprise to me.”

How to perform the Heimlich maneuver.

Get to Know Our Unmatched Senior Living Team at Applewood

Applewood is a beautiful senior living retirement community offering unlimited opportunities for living life well. But like any community, it is the people, staff and residents, who collectively create the magic you can’t buy or manufacture.

Norma Dorer, and many others like her, represent what makes Applewood unique—the people.

Learn more about our management staff and make plans to visit and discover firsthand why senior living has never been more exciting.

Applewood, a single-entity life care community affiliated with CentraState Medical Center, is located near the Jersey Shore, historic sites of interest and less than two hours from New York City and Philadelphia.

To learn more about continuing care retirement community (CCRC) living in beautiful central New Jersey, call 732-303-7416.