A Future to Look Forward to

“I was working at a construction site in north Burlington last summer when I felt unwell. Having worked in the construction business for many years I was surprised the heat was getting to me but decided to take a break and use the onsite cooling room.

After a ten minute break, I decided to go to my truck for some ice water. I still didn’t feel well and thought since I couldn’t get right back to work I’d better call my supervising foreman. My colleagues wanted to call an ambulance but I thought I’d just head home and maybe stop by the hospital on my way if I didn’t start to feel better.

Things changed quickly over the next few minutes. I wasn’t cooling off and continued to feel overheated. My foreman insisted on driving me to the Emergency Department at OTMH, a decision that saved my life. We felt I might actually be having a heart attack. A paramedic who saw me arrive asked me if I could move from the wheelchair to a stretcher. I knew I wanted to call my wife Laura and let her know where I was. Those were my last memories for almost 24 hours.”

Dan’s heart stopped beating in our Emergency Department on the morning of July 21st. He was 49 years old. Thanks to the paramedic, a team of skilled nursing staff and Dr. Paul Healey, Dan’s story is one he is able to share with us today.

“I look at this picture of the team who saved my life every week,” Dan told us when he stopped by to thank our staff in Emergency. “It’s a reminder to me of how lucky I was to be at OTMH. They never gave up on me. They had the right equipment, the right training and such great staff. My kids are 10, 8 and 6 now and have their Dad here because of the care I received so close to my job site. My wife and I have the future to look forward to.”​