Stan Gurney: The ICU "Healthiest Heart Challenge" 2013

Friday, May 31, 2013

The ICU "Healthiest Heart Challenge" 2013

Being in the ICU waiting room is not a place that anyone wants to be. We are constantly on guard when the door opens hoping to hear good news instead of bad, and we've had a lot the of bad. So, after crying buckets of tears, Heather and I realized we needed to have some laughter. So the logical thing to do was to tease and taunt Clay, Rachael's firefighter/paramedic husband, into athletic competitions. If you aren't aware, Heather has done a couple triathlons and is very active so it's a pretty good match up.

The rules are:
One event per night
Heather & Clay will take turns choosing the event
All events will be recorded and shared on this blog

Last night was Heather's choice: plank.

Enjoy!

The Victor Speech

1 comment:

UnknownMay 31, 2013 at 12:24 PM
That is super funny it's a good laugh especially after reading all about Stan.
I hope he gets better soon
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Stan's Story

Tuesday, May 28th, Stanley had a massive heart attack due to a 100% blockage of the main artery in his heart. He has received excellent medical care from Intermountain Medical Center.

The first night at the hospital, after placing a stent in the blocked artery, the doctors said his chances of survival were extremely slim. He had two complications: his heart was bruised and punctured by his broken sternum, caused by 50 minutes of CPR, and a section of the artery in his leg had to be replaced after being damaged by the catheter that had been placed in it. The first complication required open heart surgery, and the doctors put Stan on a heart-lung machine, allowing them to remove the pumping device they had threaded up the artery in his leg.

Stan is a fighter, and he has been blessed with many miracles. Initially, he beat the odds by making it through several surgeries. After a week of being on the heart-lung machine, Stanley had to have it removed due to a hemorrhage in his brain and due to a time limit for that type of life support. Because of the brain hemorrhage, he could no longer receive blood thinners; and without blood thinners, he could no longer be on the heart-lung machine. In what was literally a do-or-die situation, Stanley beat the odds again, as his own heart began to beat at about 35%.

Doctors and nurses continued to manage the many complex issues and ups and downs of his care, including kidney failure and intestinal bleeding. Faith and prayer have contributed to many miracles from above. At one point the doctors said his chance of survival was only 0-5%, but later they said it had risen to 45%. Now, we're quite confident that he is actually going to make it!

He was in the intensive care unit at the hospital for six weeks and then transferred to the University of Utah Physically Therapy unit and now is living with his sister. He continues to receive physically therapy and cardiac rehabilitation. Stan will continue to need physical therapy and medical care for at least the next 12 months.

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Friday, May 31, 2013

The ICU "Healthiest Heart Challenge" 2013

1 comment: