Stephanie's Success Story
"While fighting for life, I always had family by my side. They visited me daily.”
- Stephanie
In early March, Stephanie was feeling great. Her Mom visited from West Virginia, and they spent the day together visiting local sites and restaurants. Unfortunately, by the next evening, Stephanie was running a high fever with labored breathing and low blood pressure. She continued to decline after arriving at the ER and was admitted to the ICU where she was intubated and placed on full ventilator support. Her family was told she may need a heart transplant.
Stephanie tested positive for Influenza A, was septic with pneumonia and encountered an extensive ICU course including multiple surgeries, code blue events, multiple IV drips and antibiotics, tube feeding and chest tube placements including over 60 blood transfusions. Stephanie’s heart and lungs were so weak that for two months while in the ICU, she required Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO), an advanced therapy that is used to do the work of the heart and lungs. Stephanie had been in the ICU from March 2nd until May 17th when she was transferred to Kindred Hospital Lima.
Upon her arrival, Stephanie still required a tracheostomy tube with oxygen support, tube feeding, IV antibiotics, and she demonstrated intermittent confusion with severe deconditioning from being bedbound for over two months.
With the help of our Kindred staff, Stephanie is now walking with assistance, eating regular food, is off the vent, and her trach tube was removed. Stephanie was transferred to an in-patient rehabilitation unit for ongoing therapy as she continues her journey to a full recovery.
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.