Jeff D's Success Story
"I felt like family here, not just another patient.”
- John
I am from New Jersey and came to Tennessee for a drug and rehabilitation program. Near the end of my program, I woke one morning sick to my stomach and was emergently transported to the hospital. I had two surgeries in 30 days. I was ready to be discharged back to the rehabilitation facility when my stomach started leaking out. That night I coded three times and my outlook was very bleak. I managed to survive and was told I was coming to Kindred Hospital Chattanooga. I did not have hope.
I was still extremely sick when I arrived at Kindred. I was alone, with no friends or family. I was depressed and did not think I would get better. However, the wound care team literally and figuratively kept working on me. They became my first family. The nurses, CNAs, physical, and occupational therapists became my second family. No one gave up on me when I wanted to give up on myself. It has taken five months to heal my stomach, be able to eat again, and be able to finally work consistently with physical therapy. I finally found the hope I had been missing.
On February 15, 2024, I was one year sober. I celebrated it with my Kindred family. I hope to live as normal a life as possible, alcohol-free. When I get home to New Jersey, I want to see my two boys and go back to work. “Wound Care is phenomenal; they check every little thing and make it very personal. They wanted me to go farther than I saw myself being able to go.”
Care for Complex Conditions
Patients come to our hospitals with serious conditions such as respiratory failure, complex wounds, sepsis, stroke, congestive heart failure, or even a combination of these. Their diagnoses are often complicated by existing health problems like diabetes or COPD. Many of our patients require treatments such as mechanical ventilators, dialysis, or IV therapy.