Seconds later, he was on the floor - his heart had stopped beating.

"When I woke up, I was lying on the floor, my shirt was gone, and I was surrounded by blue legs," Mr Symes recalled.

"At that point, I'd been asleep for a while, apparently. Eventually I was put onto a trolley and taken out to an ambulance."

Now, twelve months and a stint at cardiac rehab later, Mr Symes reunited with the paramedics who helped save his life at a special morning tea at Johnson Asahi.

Paramedics Julian Cofield, Paul Kelly and Matt Perry were three of the paramedic team that attended Johnson Asahi.

"I haven't seen any of (the paramedics) since that day," Mr Symes said.

It was the last week of October, and it was to be a day that changed Mr Symes life forever.

However, he doesn't remember all that much of it.

"Two minutes before what happened I was driving, I had to come in to take a call... I just remember dialling the number," Mr Symes said.

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"It's a remarkable story, I just happened to be a participant."

However, when Mr Symes initially collapsed it wasn't the paramedics who swooped in to save the day.

Amanda Krause, one of Mr Symes' colleagues, heard a noise from his office and found him on the floor.

She immediately began to administer CPR and the onsite defibrillator was brought out.

"I collapsed and they went to work on me, as far as I understand," Mr Symes said.

"I was having a snooze at the time, it was all very casual."

However it wasn't casual for Ms Krause and Colin Flack, another co-worker, whose actions likely saved Mr Symes' life.

Across the state 18 people suffer a cardiac arrest each day, with only one in 10 surviving, according to Ambulance Victoria.

Got a story to share? Get in touch! alex.blain@mailtimes.com.au

Ms Krause said regular first aid training and drills helped her and her colleagues at Johnson Asahi jump into action and save their co-worker's life.

"It's that fight or flight. A lot of people get scared when something happens and it freezes their reactions," she said.

"But the past training we've had makes a huge difference."

Ms Krause said that Johnson Asahi had put everyone at its Horsham site - approximately 25 employees - through first aid training courses, including the use of a defibrillator.

"Whoever thought to bring one of those onsite - thank you!" Ms Krause said.

"It's already paid for itself," Mr Cofield added, noting the defibrillator was the same kind Ambulance Victoria used in their ambulances.

"It's a simple machine, it talks to you, it tells you what to do. You don't have to read anything," he said.

"It gives you all the instructions that are required.

"Even knowing how to use it, when I went to put the pads on I forgot to put the backing on and it kept telling me the same thing, so I knew that I missed something."

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When bystanders call Triple Zero, begin CPR and shock using an AED (automated external defibrillator), a person's chances of survival during a cardiac arrest increase by 72 per cent.

Every minute that CPR is delayed during a cardiac arrest, survival decreases by 10 per cent.

Ms Krause and Mr Flack had successfully restarted Mr Symes' heart by the time paramedics arrived, something paramedic Matt Perry said was a great factor in his survival.

Of all the paramedics that attended that day, Mr Symes said Paul Kelly occupied a special place in his memory.

"He was with me on the journey from Horsham to Ballarat, which was a long and painful journey. It wasn't a lot of fun for me but he made it a bit better," Mr Symes said.

Mr Symes was transferred to hospital in Ballarat, before an eventual transfer to Melbourne.

Sitting alone in bed the day after his cardiac arrest, a familiar face caught his eye.

"That afternoon there was a guy delivering a new patient," he said.

"All of a sudden I recognised him and he recognised me - he'd been standing in my office just the day before."

Paramedic Julian Cofield recalled the experience of seeing Jon the next day.

"I took a patient from Horsham to ICU at St Johns the next day and there's Jon, looking at me," Mr Cofield said.

"He said 'you treated me yesterday' and I said 'did I?'" Mr Cofield laughed.

"I didn't even recognise him at first because he looked totally different, his colour was different, he wasn't sweating and he was sitting upright."

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Mr Cofield said it was a great experience re-uniting with a patient such as Jon.

"Reunions are great, it's nice to enjoy the good side of our work. It's not all the time we get to see that," he said.

Mr Cofield said it was the actions of Ms Krause and the team at Johnson Asahi that saved the life of their colleague.

"If they hadn't done what they did, Jon might not be here," he said.

"Every minute counts, and having public access defibrillators available on site to business is a concept that is going to save so many lives.

"It wasn't anything that we did, Amanda kept Jon alive. He was alive when we showed up, his heart was started again.

"We just swept in, stabilised him and took him to hospital."

Like many life-changing events, Mr Symes' cardiac arrest affected not only himself, but those who were present during the incident.

Ms Krause said she is grateful for the support she received concerning her own wellbeing.

"I am very, very appreciate of the support we received from Ambulance Victoria, especially afterwards," she said.

Mr Symes would go on to make a full recovery, thanks in part to the team at Wimmera Healthcare Group's cardiac rehabilitation program.

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Cardiac nurse Jo Carroll emphasised that recovering from a cardiac arrest is different for everyone.

"Recovering from a cardiac arrest can be an emotional rollercoaster," she said.

"There's no right or wrong answer; then, twelve months later, whenever.

"We assess a patient using a multi-disciplinary team. There's a dietitian, a physio, a social worker.

"We work with patients to support them in achieving their goals.

"We run an eight-week program. If you've had any heart issue - it might be a heart attack, heart surgery or you have risk factors, you can come to cardiac rehab to address those risk factors.

"It's all about exercise, education and support. There's a different educational topic each week."

For his part, Mr Symes has taken the episode in his stride, returning to work with a positive outlook.

"I was happy to be home and back to work," he said.

"I only moments, isolated moments, when you think about (what happend) and get a lump in your throat."

"Events like this are stirring."

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