Coronavirus Survivor Story: Caregivers Never Gave Up
Family of coronavirus patient donates to Scripps for life-saving care
Family of coronavirus patient donates to Scripps for life-saving care
As Luis Sztuden leaves Scripps Green Hospital, the coronavirus patient is cheered on by doctors, nurses and employees who line the hallways. Other staff members follow him and his family out of the hospital, pom-poms in hand to celebrate his recovery from COVID-19.
After 32 days and winning the fight of his life, Luis is discharged from the hospital. Amid the tears of joy and words of thanks, his family shows their gratitude in another meaningful way --- through their philanthropic gifts to Scripps in honor of the caregivers who helped save Luis’s life.
“I can’t thank the doctors, nurses and everyone at Scripps enough for all they have done for Luis. I wanted to do something special for them,” says Nelly Sztuden, Luis’s wife. “They never gave up. They saved his life.”
Highly-specialized, round-the-clock care
Luis is considered in a high-risk group for contracting COVID-19. He is 83 and has diabetes. Both he and Nelly were infected, but Luis took a dramatic turn for the worse and had to be hospitalized in late March. He had a high fever and what doctors call “severe lung injury,” so he was intubated and put on a ventilator for more than two weeks in the intensive care unit (ICU).
“COVID-19 is a deadly disease,” says Krishnan Rangarajan, MD, critical care and pulmonary medicine specialist at Scripps Clinic. “I am really proud of how our team is working together to find new ways to solve problems we’ve never experienced before, stretch resources and protect our staff and patients in the process of providing that care.” He adds that it takes a significant amount of time and resources to care for each coronavirus patient.
For Luis, that team effort and highly specialized, round-the-clock care were important in his recovery. From the physicians and nurses to the respiratory therapists and nutritionists, Luis's caregivers did not give up, and the coronavirus patient started to respond.
“One day when I came in to check on him, Luis was awake, and he told me he was ready to have the breathing tube taken out,” Dr. Rangarajan says. “Luis was the first COVID-19 patient I took off a ventilator, and over the course of the next few hours, he was able to maintain breathing on his own. It was a really special moment for all of us.”
“I was so nervous waiting to see how Luis would do,” says Nelly. “When I got the call that he was breathing on his own, I was so incredibly relieved and called it a miracle.”
“It makes our job so rewarding when we meet someone like Luis,” says Elaine Hennig, RN, ICU nurse manager. “He showed us that the care we provide does make a difference. We did it — together.”
How do you thank some for saving a life?
Luis was moved from the ICU into a lower acuity direct observation unit. Nelly says the caregivers in the ICU and the direct observation unit at Scripps Green were always there for her and her family, providing words of encouragement, sharing phone updates and even coordinating virtual check-ins for Luis and his loved ones using iPads.
“How do you thank someone for saving a life?” says Nelly. “My sons, Alex and Daniel, and I can never repay the caregivers at Scripps for what they have done for our family. Through our donations, we want to give these heroes on the front lines something special — something that brings them joy and helps keep them going.”