Healing Stories
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We get many stories from patrons and volunteers about how the Arnold Palmer Medical Center has helped their lives. Read a small sampling of these stories below and see why we're so proud to support our hospitals.
Cheryl T.
I am a new volunteer this year to the "Arnold Palmer Invitational". I am excited to be a volunteer for many reasons but mainly due to what transpired within my own family and what kind of experience we walked away from with at the time the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Woman and Children which is now the Winnie Palmer Hospital for Woman and babies.
At the time my family and I had just moved to the Orlando, FL area. My two children had just started the new school year when a few months later the flu was going around and the three of us came down with a severe case of it. My son who was only in second grade at the time had a greater battle to fight as his flu went into pneumonia and he was rushed by ambulance to the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Woman and Children. He then spent a week there battling for his life. He was an extremely sick little boy. If it wasn't for the care that he received from their excellent staff of doctors as well as a phenomenal and caring nursing staff at the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Woman and Children it would have made for an even worse situation. I was so very impressed by everyone and everything. From all of the care and concern with everyone at the hospital to all of the events and volunteer's that would come daily to the hospital to give these patients a little diversion from the why's of them being there.
My son who is now 14 and very healthy is very grateful for his care and still remembers vividly his experience there and just how sick he was. He is excited that his mom is volunteering for not only the Arnold Palmer Bay Hill Invitational as he is also a golfer now but as well that this sport that we have also grown to love is also the reason for this hospital. It is so very important to us that we can give back and be assured that the experience of another is also that of what we have encountered.
Lisa and Ed K.
My husband, Ed has been a volunteer at the Arnold Palmer Invitational for quite a few years. He read in your recent newsletter about having volunteers share their "healing stories" and how they benefited from the medical care provided by Arnold Palmer Hospital, so he asked me to write on behalf of him about our recent healing experience at Arnold Palmer Hospital with our daughter, Haley.
In 2006, Haley was diagnosed with Scoliosis during a routine pediatric checkup. After it was confirmed by xrays, she was referred to the pediatric orthopedic group at Arnold Palmer Hospital for further evaluation and monitoring every 3 months.
For the next couple years, she had to wear an orthopedic scoliosis brace for 8 hours every night. As her body grew, the degree of her spinal curve kept getting worse, so the doctor had to add an additional scoliosis brace for her to wear during the day. She had to wear a day brace for 8 hours and the night one for 8 hours too. Haley was such a good sport through all of this, until she had had enough of wearing braces for over 16 hrs of her daily life. Being a young teenager, it was starting to stress her out and make her tired. It was hard to hide the day brace under her clothing and was very hot and uncomfortable to wear at school. And the night brace kept her so confined, she never got a good night's sleep.
After numerous office visits along with the additional bracing, the doctor saw that her curve was still getting worse. He finally determined that surgery was the only other option. Her spine was at a 58 degree curve and so pre-op testing began.
Haley went to Arnold Palmer Hospital for her outpatient pre-op testing which included more xrays, an MRI, bloodwork, etc. We also were able to take a guided tour of the hospital facility prior to her surgery. A special, patient care coordinator guided us through the different departments of the hospital and showed Haley where she would be the day of surgery. Once in the room, Haley was given step by step details of what to expect just before surgery, how many IV's she was going to have and also details of what would be happening to her after surgery. It was very informative and Haley asked lots of questions. The answers and helpful information she received, helped put her at ease with her worries. She left the hospital that day ready to take on her surgery.
On December 1st, Haley went into surgery at Arnold Palmer Hospital. Her spinal fusion surgery lasted about 6 hours. She had rods, screws and bone grafts put in place in order to get as much correction of the curve as possible. Because of the length of surgery, she had to have a blood transfusion using her own blood she had banked a few weeks prior. After surgery was over, the doctor came out to the waiting room and told us he was very pleased with the outcome. He had corrected her spine from 58 degrees to 18 degrees!!! Even he said it had turned out better than he expected.
The rest of Haley's hospital stay was awesome. The hospital staff was wonderful and made her feel comfortable while she rested and got better. By the 4th day after surgery, Haley was up and out of the bed and began to walk the hallway with her physical therapist. When she first stood up, I could see that she was immediately taller! On day 6 after surgery, she went home.
She had a couple of painful weeks after she got home from the hospital, but each day would get better and the pain, more tolerable. Now it has only been 2 1/2 months and she feels great! She is so straight and tall and looks beautiful. Haley is such an active girl who likes to roller skate, horseback ride and most of all, play J.V. volleyball for her high school team. But she still has to wait a few more months for her spine to heal before she can do any of those fun things. She's almost there, she is such a strong willed girl. And even with being out of school for a month (and completing all her classwork at home), she still was able to maintain a straight-A (4.3GPA) average.
Since Haley's surgery, she has decided she would like to be an advocate for other children who suffer from Scoliosis. She has created a Facebook support group just for teens called, "A Teenagers Guide On How To Cope With Scoliosis". She also is looking into possibly volunteering this summer at Arnold Palmer/Winnie Palmer Hospital so she can get her volunteer hours in towards a Bright Future's Scholarship.
My husband Ed and I are so thankful for everyone at Arnold Palmer Hospital who took such great care of our daughter. Even though it was a stressful time, the staff made it such a pleasant experience for our family. We always felt welcome and never rushed to have leave. I don't think we could have chosen a better place for Haley's surgery. We knew she was in good hands.
Thanks for hearing our "healing story". Hope it helps someone else when they read it. And thank you, Mr. Arnold Palmer for providing such a wonderful (& beautiful) facility for our children to get well, heal and be happy during the time they spend there.
Lisa & Ed K.
DeLand, FL
Lynne B.
I came across the February newsletter, and thought I'd send you a healing story about my granddaughter, Addison.
Addison was born on 9/13/08, she was not due until 10/23, and she only weighed just over 2 lbs. We call her our miracle baby. Addison received excellent care during her six-week stay at Winnie Palmer, and was able to come home.
Although she is still on a feeding tube, and she is still very tiny, she is doing very well. She just turned 18 mos, and is finally walking. She is still in 9-month clothing, and only weighs 17 1/2 lbs, but she is very feisty, and has great eye-hand coordination, and is absolutely adorable. I tell her parents that she will be the athlete, and her big sister, Alexis, will be the dancer.
Thank you!
Lynne B.
