Stories of Humankindness

I was brought to St. Anthony from the Grandby ER by helicopter late at night on Tues. August 12th. I had just begun to celebrate my 40-year anniversary on vacation with my husband and sons when this emergency happened. I arrived at St. Anthony's in immense pain and extremely frightened, somewhat confused and sad. Zach was the ICU nurse who took care of me that first night and the second as well.

Zach was at my bedside almost continuously throughout the first night. He was compassionate, calming, and extremely attentive to what was happening to both my body and my spirit. He asked questions; he listened, and he took appropriate actions to help me survive and to feel soothed. Plus, he had a sense of humor. I have relied on a sense of humor most of my life to help me through challenging situations. Zach helped me rally that same humor to get me through that first night.

The second night, my condition flared up once again. My husband and sons had gone home that evening to rest, so I was alone in the hospital and quite a bit anxious as I taken down for another CT scan. Once again, Zach's kindness helped me get through that night. St. Anthony's is an incredible hospital, and so many caregivers came and went into my room. I believe there were at least three teams following me, in addition to speech, occupational therapy, and physical therapy. Things did get a little confusing due to my condition. Zach asked me point blank if I understood everything that was happening in terms of my care and plans that were developing, and I confessed that I did not. So, he made that a goal of my care and communicated that to the rest of the teams! And things did get a bit better. Each person who came in did spend more time with me ensuring I understood what they were saying and what next steps were for me. This outcome was very helpful, and I am thankful to Zach for taking that step. It is with deep gratitude that I share this story about my caregiver Zach Kitzis.

I had a hip replacement surgery at the outpatient center. While all the staff were good, the person who gave me the anesthesia was excellent. Before going into the operating room, he walked me through exactly what was going to happen and what he would do. He reassured me that he would be with me to answer questions or provide information. He was friendly, very attentive and made me feel very comfortable and safe. In the operating room, he continued to communicate with me and reassure me. I am so grateful.

We would like to thank the pre-op, surgery and post-op crew for their care of me. I was in for a knee replacement surgery by Dr. Kevin Hug at noon and ready for discharge the same day at 6:30pm. All the nurses, OR team and post-op folks were kindly and saw to it that I was ready for discharge.

I am writing this because I cannot thank the first responders who saved my husband life on July 7, 2025 enough. I will be eternally grateful. After that, he was sent to ICU for 5 days. I recall Dr. Reynolds and Dr. Nermin who patiently and expertly made decisions on his care. There were others on the team, but I do not know all their names. One night nurse, Mark, was exceptionally kind and helpful. The entire staff was excellent. After those 5 days, he went to rehab. Again, he had excellent care. One night nurse, Meghan (I believe was her name) stood out. She was being transferred to the day shift the following week. I am happy to report that my husband is doing amazingly well. We are grateful for your outstanding handling of an extremely stressful situation for us.

It would be hard for me to pick out a specific individual yet there are a few that were extremely helpful. I'll never forget when my husband went through a whole year and a half of battling cancer. Everyone that was involved in that from the nurses in the hospital to the caretakers in the cancer center at the radiation department, the oncology department. I could go on and on they've all been excellent. We never ran across anybody that was tired (seemingly), aggravated or not helpful, which means so much to people such as ourselves that were in such need of support. I will never forget them. Then there's Dr Allison's office, oh my gosh, I could just go on and on. On top of my husband being so desperately ill, I needed care that required me to be radiated. Dr Ceilly's office, as well as Dr Allison came in and took care of that. We were very blessed to meet these wonderful people that do a fantastic job and they have a lot of sympathy and care for their patients.

Dr. Fowler is the greatest caregiver I have ever had. She is knowledgeable and suggests treatment for me after hearing my concerns. I have been with Dr. Fowler for years and she was with me through multiple surgeries. Her staff is awesome and she is never at a rush with my appointment. I highly recommend Dr. Fowler for a honor.

My mom was in the ICU for 17 days in August and Ashley was one of her nurses. She was very caring, attentive, and helpful, and our family really appreciated her.