Feeling Very Grateful and Blessed for Excellent Heart Care
STEMI Heart Attack Survivor, Retired Alpena County Deputy, Husband
“From the young man who first took my information at the hospital in Alpena to the nurses, technicians, doctors and all those who took care of me, I offer my sincere gratitude and thanks.”
Jerry Broad, 85, a retired deputy from the Alpena County Sheriff’s Department, knew the chest pain he experienced one evening at bedtime was unusual. When he tried to lay down the pain became worse. He told his wife he was going to the Emergency Department (ER) at MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena to get it checked out, and she insisted on driving him. It’s a good thing, because he was having a heart attack. Thanks to his quick recognition, the fast work from the care teams at the Medical Center and subsequent treatment at MyMichigan Medical Center Midland, Broad is feeling well and back to his normal activities.
Broad expressed his gratitude for the excellent care he received by penning a letter to the editor in the local paper, saying “I thank God I’m alive today, and cannot offer enough praise to those who staff and make MyMichigan Medical Center such a blessing to northeastern Michigan.”
When Broad entered the ER and explained that he was having chest pain, he was immediately taken for testing. When a heart attack was confirmed, staff acted quickly to get Broad into the Cardiac Cath Lab to repair a severe blockage in his left anterior descending (LAD) artery. This artery is responsible for supplying blood to the front and lower part of the left ventricle. Stenosis, the disease responsible for narrowing arteries, was also present in another artery. Three stents were placed by Interventional Cardiologist Hassan Mostafa, M.D., in order to open the arteries back up and reestablish good blood flow to his heart.
“They moved so quickly,” Broad said. “Before I knew it, I was waking up following the procedure. I spent three days in the hospital recovering, and staff members were very attentive to all my needs.” Broad joked that they were almost too attentive; he didn’t realize he needed help to get out of bed and set off alarms a couple of times. The care team helped him understand that his safety was their top priority and he needed someone present when getting up to avoid a fall.
After healing from his emergent cardiac treatment, Broad was scheduled for a subsequent procedure in Midland where Dr. Mostafa placed additional stents to repair a less significant blockage in another artery identified during his stay in Alpena. While emergent life-saving percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) can now be performed in Alpena, subsequent elective interventional procedures are performed at MyMichigan Medical Center Midland.
“The level of care I received in Midland was also top-notch,” Broad said. “I was discharged the next day and felt as good as new.”
This experience has made Broad feel blessed and keenly aware of three things: the need for quality heart care close to home, the significant benefit of MyMichigan Health’s network of facilities and specialists, and the importance not driving yourself to the ER when you’re experiencing chest pain.
“I’m glad my wife was there to deliver me safely to the ER at a time when it was more serious than I first thought,” shared Broad. “From the young man who first took my information at the hospital in Alpena to the nurses, technicians, doctors and all those who took care of me, I offer my sincere gratitude and thanks.”
Those who would like more information about the scope of heart and vascular services at MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena may visit www.mymichigan.org/alpenaheartcare.
