Grateful Patient: Dick Kwist, Emergency / Medical Inpatient

For more than 30 years, Dick Kwist has walked down the four steps in the hallway of his home without any trouble. But in one quick moment, when he lost his footing on those steps and fell, he was left in incredible pain and unable to speak or move.

Dick, and his wife Ann, were just a half hour away from heading out on a family vacation at a northern Ontario cottage when he lost his footing and fell onto the hardwood. He said the pain was instant, and intense.

“I can remember hearing the crack,” he said, indicating he knew he had broken bones.

Ann called an ambulance right away.

“After a lot of finagling, they got me off the floor and into the ambulance,” he said.

When the ambulance arrived at The Brantford General, Dick was quickly taken from the Emergency Department to Diagnostic Imaging, where an x-ray indicated he had broken three ribs, and one had punctured his lung. His shoulder muscles and tendons were also detached, explaining his severe pain.

“I could just moan,” he said. “That’s how I could communicate.”

Morphine and muscle relaxing medications helped Dick to settle in while Dr. Rebecca Comley and an intern worked to insert a chest tube to drain fluid and reinflate his lung.

“I was very pleased at the care he received,” said Ann, explaining Dr. Comley and the Emergency Department staff kept working on Dick’s case until they knew what was causing his pain.

She said everyone was very caring with Dick and worked as a team until he was admitted to a hospital bed later that evening.

“Right from the ambulance to emergency to the seventh floor (where Dick was admitted), I felt he was very well cared for,” said Ann. “I’m grateful for the care he received because then I didn’t have to worry. He was in the best place possible.”

Unfortunately, there isn’t much that can be done to treat broken ribs. There is no bandage or cast that can be applied. The treatment prescribed was rest.

“Our vacation was a stay-cation at The Brantford General,” said Ann.

Dick was grateful that Ann could be with him. He realized that allowing his broken ribs to heal
meant no laughing or coughing or sneezing. One sneeze that caught him off guard left him reeling.

“That pain from falling down the stairs was back instantly and lasted about 15 minutes,” he said.

Dick’s journey towards wellness continues, but full healing will take some time. He and Ann have taken a short vacation together to celebrate.

“I’m just so thankful that everything went so well,” said Dick. “I am grateful to everyone that helped me.”

The equipment supported by donor dollars isn’t all ‘nice to have’—it is critical, much-needed medical equipment required to perform daily diagnostics and care for patients.

As Dick has learned first-hand, when crisis or illness impacts you or a loved one, the Brant Community Healthcare System is here to offer you exceptional healthcare in your time of need.

Your involvement, through a donation of any size, will allow the BCHS Foundation to purchase patient equipment not funded by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, provide essential resources to maintain the exceptional level of compassionate patient care, and invest in new and innovative technology.

To make a donation, click here or call 519-751-5510.

This holiday season, give a gift that could save a life and be a part of the Brant Community Healthcare System Foundation’s 12 Days of Giving Campaign.

Photo above: Dick and Ann Kwist