11 Lutheran physicians receive kudos
Eleven Lutheran physicians received kudos from patients and colleagues last month for exceptional partnership and compassionate care. We’re proud to recognize them by posting the comments we’ve received on their behalf in Pulse.
The first case recalls the care of a patient who started at Good Samaritan and was transferred to Lutheran. All physicians mentioned are on our medical staff.
Dr. Kudos given by a colleague via the Dr. Kudos Submission Form
A patient presented to the GSH ED with 3rd-degree heart block causing syncope and an open tib-fib fracture. While in the ED he suffered cardiac arrest. Dr. Matthew Nimmo in the GSH ED obtained ROSC and stabilized the bradyarrhythmia. Dr. Shaheer Zulfiqar performed emergent transvenous pacer placement and identified severe 3-vessel CAD. Only an hour after the call was first placed to Dr. Zulfiqar, he and the Good Sam’s Cath Lab team had both responded to the after-hours activation and already completed the pacer placement and angiography and were on the phone with First Call requesting transfer for CV surgery while simultaneously placing an aortic balloon pump.
The accepting team at Lutheran included Drs. Leah Wydro, Ramesh Devanesan, Gregory Pinson, Allan Brants and Oscar Noel. The patient was transferred from Good Sam’s Cath Lab to the Lutheran ICU and was then in the OR at Lutheran with Dr. Brants and anesthesiologist Dr. Natalie Hamilton for an emergent CABG and aortic valve replacement first thing that morning. He had his 11-hour cardiac case followed directly by external fixation of his open fracture by Dr. Noel.
There were obviously multitudes of others involved in this case as well, and everyone who had a hand in his care should take pride in this patient discharging from the hospital to rehab.
On my review, what was most striking were the consistently short time stamps between a clinical event, First Call making a call, having a physician provide an affirmative response, and then those physicians coordinating care across multiple specialties and multiple care locations in a profoundly critically ill patient. For orthopedic surgery to have completed washout and external fixation of the initial open fracture only 26 hours after first presentation, all while undergoing an intervening cardiac arrest with resuscitation, cardiac catheterization with supportive device placement, inter-facility transfer while paced on balloon pump support, and multi-vessel cardiac bypass surgery with concurrent valve replacement, seems like truly remarkable care.
Ed note: As stated, the above kudos was submitted via Lutheran’s Dr. Kudos Submission Form. If you’d like your colleagues to be recognized for exceptional care and teamwork in Pulse, please click the button below.
A patient comment shared with the patient experience rep
Dr. Victor Abela was very caring. I was pretty sick and he listened carefully and made sure to incorporate my needs into the plan of care. The nurses were amazing. They always looked glad to see me even when I was throwing up. The GI doctor, Dr. Taimur Khan, asked me to explain what had happened before he talked about the procedure. I have never had a doctor do that before.
Patient review posted online
Dr. Kevin Flynn was amazing: friendly, personable, patient, informative. We felt totally comfortable with him and his detailed diagnosis. Dr. Flynn is most definitely the best ER physician I have ever met. He was truly amazing! Intermountain is fortunate to have Dr. Flynn!
Thank you to these physicians and all members of our medical staff who provide the highest-quality care with compassion to all patients, every day.