The year 2020 has opened our eyes to the world’s truest heroes—our dedicated doctors, nurses and healthcare workers. I am writing to express my utmost gratitude to the staff at Maimonides Medical Center for helping to save my life. It is ultimately G-d who heals, but the messengers he sent to heal me deserve a huge thank you. Hashem has given me a second lease on life and I now appreciate every second. Every breath we take is a gift from Above and we should never take anything for granted.
On April 24th, I woke up with extreme shortness of breath and was rushed to a hospital. On arrival, I was diagnosed with COVID, despite the fact that repeated tests came back negative. After two weeks, I was sent home with oxygen to “recover.” One night later I had another attack and woke up with even worse shortness of breath.
Selfless Hatzolah volunteers from our community arrived and did an EKG, fearing that I was having a preliminary heart attack. They decided to rush me to Maimonides. The decision to take me to Maimonides is what saved my life.
At Maimonides, they figured out exactly what my issue was. It was not COVID-19 at all—I had a faulty heart valve that was in need of repair. All the symptoms I had were pointing to that diagnosis, and the Maimonides team was able to look beyond the raging pandemic to find the true cause of my distress. Once open heart surgery was scheduled, the nurses and doctors saw to it that I was comfortable and cared for. No visitors were allowed because of the pandemic, which was scary for me and my family, but Maimonides was sensitive to that issue and made sure to update my family throughout the whole process.
The nurses and doctors were like my surrogate family. They walked me through every step and held my hand as I recovered. Dr. Israel Jacobowitz, my heart surgeon, did an amazing job. He was there to answer all my questions. Replacing my faulty heart valve would have been easier and taken less time; nevertheless, he put his full effort into repairing the valve. Thank you, Dr. Jacobowitz, for fully repairing my heart.
Maimonides is ranked one of the top hospitals for cardiac-related issues and I can personally attest to this. I would love to single out all the doctors, nurses, and especially the Sephardic patient reps, who helped me recover and get home, but there are too many to name. Thank you to the entire staff at Maimonides for putting aside your personal needs and risking yourselves to help others. You are truly heroes.
