Vickie
Quesnel, RN
Port Angeles, Washington
Vickie Quesnel is a strong advocate for
educating women about the signs of a heart attack and just
as strong an advocate for calling 911 as soon as a sign occurs.
Vickie admits that in July 2007 she learned the hard way to
make that call. The evening of her heart attack was like most
others—she fixed dinner, walked the dog, sent her husband
off to work and went to bed. But she couldn’t get comfortable
enough to sleep. She got up, got a drink of water, watched
some television, but felt increasingly ill. Eventually she
tried to get to her couch but experienced shortness of breath
and passed out. When she woke up, she crawled to her phone—not
to call 911, but her husband. He got her to the hospital where
she was quickly diagnosed and transported by Airlift Northwest
to Tacoma. Her doctor gave her a 25 percent chance of survival.
Vickie beat those odds and was back at work in six weeks.
Today she doesn’t miss a chance to tell others to pay
attention—know the signs of a heart attack—and
call for help.
From Olympic Medical Center (Port Angeles,
WA) to St. Joseph Medical Center (Tacoma, WA)
(More
patient and partner stories here)
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