This coming Saturday, our daughter is getting married. Without the sharp attention of our nurse, Mira, prepping my husband for surgery, her father might not be walking her down the aisle. She was completing all the pre-surgical protocol, preparing my husband for surgery. As she reviewed the monitors, she noted that something didn't look right; His BP was extremely high, and his heart rhythm wasn't normal. Not good conditions for a man heading into surgery. Mira notified the anesthesiologist, who had serious reservations about proceeding with surgery for some one displaying these conditions. He would consult with the Doctor about proceeding.

Challenging the entire medical team was the window for fixing the problem was narrowing quickly, and my husband could end up with serious complicaitons if they were unable to get him to a safe status. If they couldn’t achieve cardiac stability, his life would be at risk in surgery. Thus began a healthcare saga that had the Anesthesiologist, Doctor, ER, and Cardiology furiously consulting about how to be able to complete this surgery without putting my husband at risk of severe complications due to his heart issues.

The rest of the evening was spent in the ER, focused on lowering his blood pressure. Correcting the heart arhythmia was their second goal. From the ER, he was moved to a regular room, and in the effort to get him to a condition where he could safely have the surgery, he was given a drip. As a layman, I know there was a lot of medical communication going on behind the scenes, most of which I will never know. I’m just so grateful for the knowledge, passion, and commitment to keep my husband safe that everyone displayed.

By the next afternoon, the coordinated efforts of the medical team made it possible for the surgery to commence. It was successfully completed, and my husband was released to go home. Would events have unfolded differently if Mira hadn’t noted the heart rhythm arrhythmia? We will never know. But I thank God every day for her noticing the issues on my husband's monitor, and reacting so quickly! Five days from now, our daughter will walk down the aisle, escorted by her father. And we all will be saying thanks to God for Mira being on duty that day! Thanks to her alertness and quick reaction, I believe she saved my husband’s life. Mira deserves recognition for her life-saving response!