Methodist Healthcare System | Keeping Well | Fall 2018

TWO MEN WHO WERE AT DEATH’S DOOR are getting a second chance at life thanks to ECMO, Ex- tracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation. The process supplies oxygenated blood to the body when the heart and lungs cannot. Methodist Hospital is the only private hospital in the area using ECMO technology. ECMO HELPS PATIENT SURVIVE SEVERE STROKE Richard Willis had a 100 percent risk of death, his doc- tor at Methodist Hospital said, from the complications that resulted from a stroke on November 30, 2017. He was in the hospital 66 days fighting for his life. Thanks to the efforts of hospital staff and ECMO technology, Willis lived to see the delivery of twin grandchildren, a boy and a girl, born in February, and is doing well. Willis, 55, suffered a brain aneurysm while at his office. The aneurysm was repaired, but then he had a vasospasm, which occurred when blood vessels clamped down and restricted blood flow. The medical team had to keep blood pressure high and provide flu- ids to prevent another stroke. The fluid that was added filled his lungs, making it hard for the heart to pump blood properly and causing a neurogenic pulmonary edema, an accumulation of excess fluid in his lungs. The medical team used ECMO for 10 days to pro- vide temporary support for his lungs. “He tried to die on us a couple of times, but we were able to maintain a perfect balance of fluids and blood pressure,” said Christopher Burdick, MD, one of Willis’ doctors. “Use of ECMO for severe neurogenic pulmonary edema is rare. But in this case, it saved his life.” FLU ALMOST COSTS PATIENT HIS LIFE In late Decem- ber of last year, Justin Moreno, 29, was feeling sick and thought he had caught a cold. When he did not get better, he went to a clinic and tested positive for the flu. He was told that since he already had the flu for four days, it was too late for medication to do any good. Staff advised him to let the flu run its course. After a couple of more days, Justin still was not feeling well and went to the ER at Northeast Method- ist Hospital, a campus of Methodist Hospital. A chest x-ray showed he had pneumonia, and he was sent home with medications. His condition worsened. He was admitted to ICU with respiratory failure. One lung was completely full of fluid; the other half full. Justin said he woke up three weeks later in a dif- ferent hospital and on ECMO. Jeffrey D. Dellavolpe, MD, and staff moved him to Methodist Hospital. Richard Willis with his twin grandbabies ECMO SAVES LIVES Justin was in the hospital 45 days. He was released February 14, 2018. “It was a life-changing moment for me,” said Justin. “It’s nice to know that there is a procedure available to give you the ability to heal. ECMO saved my life.” “There is a good possibility he would have died without ECMO,” said Dr. Dellavolpe. “Even with the best medical care, the chance of dying is very high for someone as sick as he was. Even if he was one of the lucky ones that would have survived without ECMO, he would have required a much longer time on the breathing machine and would have likely had many more lung complications or even been dependent long term on the ventilator.” Justin Moreno with his wife Madison and stepdaughter Payton Turner quality and safety,” added Wesolowski. In addition to these recent scores, in 2017, Metropolitan Methodist Hospital was the only hospital in San Antonio to ever win the Top General Hospital Award from Leapfrog and one of only three Texas hospitals recognized that year. This award is widely acknowledged as one of the most competitive honors American hospitals can receive. Receiving an “A” Safety Grade means a hospital is among the best in the country for preventing safety problems and putting their patients first, 24 hours a day. To see Methodist Healthcare’s full grade details, and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hos- pital, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org and follow the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade on Twitter and Facebook. METHODIST HEALTHCARE HOSPITALS MAKE LEAPFROG SAFETY HONOR ROLL Methodist once again graded as safest healthcare system in the region and Methodist Texsan Hospital. Methodist Stone Oak Hospital re- ceived a grade of “B.” “This excep- tional commit- ment to hospital safety has been consistent across all Methodist hospitals and it is an unbelievable achieve- ment to continue to rank as the safest hospital in the region,” said Jaime Wesolowski, President and CEO, Methodist Healthcare. “A patient entering a Methodist hospital has a lesser chance of succumbing to infections, surgical errors and patient injuries due to our focus on THE LEAPFROG GROUP, a Washington D.C.-based organization aiming to improve healthcare quality and safety for consumers and purchasers, recently released the new Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades. Methodist Healthcare hospitals were among 750 awarded an “A” for their efforts in protecting patients from harm and meeting the highest safety standards in the U.S. The Safety Grade assigns an A, B, C, D or F grade to hospi- tals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms among patients in their care. Methodist Healthcare facilities receiving A’s include Methodist Hospital, Methodist Children’s Hospital, Methodist Specialty and Transplant Hospital, Metropoli- tan Methodist Hospital, Northeast Methodist Hospital 4 F A L L 2 0 1 8 K E E P I N G W E L L M e t h o d i s t H e a l t h c a r e