My heart stopped while in the care of Vacaville FD paramedics. They performed CPR for 30 minutes at the fire station and en route to NorthBay Fairfield. The excellent staff at the NorthBay ER continued CPR and put in a stent. I was moved to the ICU where they lowered my body temperature and induced a coma. As a result of all the actions of everyone involved, my life was saved with no loss in brain function. I cannot thank the VV FD paramedics, ER. staff, the doctors of the Heart and Vascular Center and the ICU staff enough for their professionalism and outstanding care. I owethem what I can never repay.
I have no memory of Sunday-Wednesday but on Thursday morning, I was regaining self-awareness and moved to a standard rehabilitation ward. My nurse was Peter Dhaliwal and was incredibly important to the rest of my recovery. He was the classic "right person at the right time." It was not the fact he helped me with the physical aspect of my recovery. This is standard care that anyone would provide and he provided the care with incredible grace. This was not the catalyst for the inspiration toget well. After I ate lunch (first real food in 4 days), Peter stayed with me for a while. He explained what I had been through, showed me pictures of my heart before and after the stent and impressed upon me just how lucky I was. This was exactly what I needed to hear. He helped me to understand that I was amongst a very small group of very lucky survivors.
Peter was incredibly professional and absolutely positive during his explanation. He treated me like a celebrity. He made me believe in myself and made me feel so special. Armed with this information and inspiration, I developed a singular purpose, survival. I knew the path the survival was through getting out of the hospital. I took charge of going to the bathroom, eating, engaging with the hospital staff and my guests. I acutely understood that self-sufficiency was the key.
I came back to NorthBay earlier this week to collect some records and thank people. I found the one person I wanted to thank most- Peter. He quickly pointed out what a small piece of the puzzle he was. Peter immediately began to accentuate the importance of other team members and even the impact my wife had on the outcome. His humility gives definition to the word! He recommended I submit a "thank you" to the hospital on behalf of the entire staff.
I found out about the DAISY Award and am inspired to submit Peter for this wonderful honor. Peter's compassion, professionalism, skilled care, candid explanations, extremely supportive nature, humility, and complete grace make him an absolute gem. He has forever changed my life by bringing me clarity. People pay outrageous amount of money to gain clarity; Peter simply handed it to me. To those that saved my life I say thank you. To Peter for showing me how to live the rest of it I say, bless you!