Care When You Need It: A Patient’s Story

Unexpected stomach pain leads to surgery to remove local patient’s appendix.

Patient J-me LaQuet and husband

J-me LaQuet moved from Washington after falling in love with the Spanish Springs area and deciding she was ready for a change in scenery. Just two days after moving into their new home, J-me and her family were enjoying  dinner when she started to experience stomach pain.

“I did not have any pain until right after dinner, so I thought it was just indigestion from eating too big of a meal,” she said. “So I decided to walk around the neighborhood, take a hot bath, and tried indigestion medicine. But nothing was easing my pain.”

At around 1:30 a.m., with no relief from her symptoms, J-me decided to go to the ER at Spanish Springs, An Extension of Northern Nevada Medical Center.

Prompt, reassuring care

“I was seen right away upon arriving at the ER at Spanish Springs,” she said. “The doctor that tended to me was very sweet and helped to manage my pain while they ran tests to figure out what was going on.”

When doctors got the results, they told J-me that bloodwork indicated her appendix was the probable culprit and that she would need to have it removed. J-me was taken to Northern Nevada Medical Center for further testing.

“I was transported to Northern Nevada Medical Center within two hours of arriving at the ER at Spanish Springs,” she said. “I truly felt that the staff cared about getting me to the hospital quickly to confirm what was wrong and to take care of it.”

Playing a part in her own care

“Everyone was so kind and nice, and listened to me and my concerns,” she said. “They did not doubt my thoughts about my pain and body and let me be part of the decision-making process.”

J-me also praised the pre-op team for helping to make her feel at ease and comfortable before surgery. “The OR pre-op nurse was just so funny and the anesthesiologist insisted I call him by his first name, so I was confident in the team based on the rapport we created,” she said. “I was not at all worried when heading into surgery and everything went well!”

After a successful removal of her appendix, J-me spent time on the med/surg unit to recover before her discharge home.

“The staff from the start of the journey at the ER at Spanish Springs to the staff on the med/surg unit made me feel like family,” she said. “I even received a hand-written note from the med/surg team after I was discharged and back at home. I just cannot believe how sweet they were to think of me even after I was no longer their patient.”

Although J-me had a bit of a unique start to her move to the area, she said she is happy to know both facilities are close by, with staff that made her feel like she mattered.

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