I recently had open heart surgery at Maine Medical Center. It was quite an experience. First, the notion that one’s heart can be removed from the body and that surgeons use a vein to bypass blockages in one’s heart is complex enough and risky enough to give patients concern, to say the least. That surgeons do this routinely and successfully at Maine Med is extraordinary. Certainly I am thankful for my surgeon, Dr. Ansar Hassan, and his surgical team for making my quadruple bypass a success.

Thanks also to the nurses and certified nursing assistants who make the recovery process work for us patients. Twelve-hour shifts, high patient loads (my nurses and CNAs served eight to 10 patients), cramped conditions – they seem to take it all in stride. They are caring, relentlessly upbeat and always ready to help. I have new appreciation for them and their key role in patient recovery.

Now home almost two weeks, I am gaining strength day by day. I am walking, doing some simple physical therapy and even helped my wife with some dishwashing yesterday. At 79, I have a new lease on life, and I plan to make the most of it.

Ron Bancroft
Cumberland

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