Hospital: PAM Health Specialty Hospital of Heritage Valley
Diagnosis: Respiratory failure
Kim Stone, 61, was admitted to PAM Health Specialty Hospital at Heritage Valley for respiratory failure, influenza A, sepsis, kidney injury requiring dialysis, diabetes-induced ketoacidosis. Kim chose PAM Health because her family heard positive feedback, and it was close by to Heritage Valley Beaver hospital where she had been initially admitted.
Kim reports that she was very scared and debilitated when she first arrived at PAM Health, remembering all of the lines and tubes she was connected to, and that she was unable to roll herself in the bed. Unable to talk or communicate well, she felt confused and couldn’t understand what was happening to her, but with caring staff and family by her side, she had the support she needed to start healing. She arrived at PAM Health with a small wound, to which the wound care team diligently tended to expedite its healing. Our interdisciplinary approach to care included our dialysis, nursing, therapy, wound care, and respiratory teams who all collaborated to address her care needs in a coordinated way. A breakthrough during her stay was the first time she was able to stand since her initial hospitalization, something she wasn’t always sure would ever happen again. She also is grateful that she passed her swallow study and is able to eat again. Her favorite foods are lasagna and beef stew!
Kim appreciated our overall caring and attentive staff, especially her therapists’ support in physical, occupational, and speech therapies and her great dialysis care from nurse Jen. She also expressed gratitude for her nurse Michelle and the doctor, who she credits with saving her life. The youngest of three sisters and mother of two boys, Kim looks forward to returning back to her normal life after inpatient rehabilitation. She loves to play Xbox in her free time and is very good at Fortnite, she says. Congratulations to Kim for all of your hard work and progress. Thank you for trusting PAM Health with your care and recovery!
