“font-family: Verdana; font-size: 9pt;”>“I felt a fast, sudden pressure in my chest,” recalls 56-year-old Lola Hill. “I thought, ‘This must be gas from the peanuts.’”
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Hill and her husband were visiting with family on a quiet Saturday night in early December. She was enjoying a few honey-roasted peanuts and drinking a soda. She convinced her husband that they needed to visit his mother’s where they’d see family and friends. After his accident on a job site, she was concerned that he was only getting out of the house for rehab sessions.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>”After a while, the chest pain got a little worse,” she remembers. “As we began to watch a movie, my chest pain increased. It felt like somebody had their hand on my chest. But I was in denial. I remember thinking, ‘This cannot be a heart attack.’”
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Then she remembered recently completing an on-line course on Missouri Baptist’s intranet about heart attack symptoms and what to do. Missouri Baptist provides on-line education for employees. Hill is an office coordinator in its Cancer Center. Annually, employees are required to pass a series of short on-line tests to ensure that they are aware of the symptoms and/or appropriate responses for various health and safety-related issues.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Thanks to the heart attack module, Hill remembered that she needed to get to the ER at the onset of pain – that getting there quickly was important because time equals less damage to the heart muscle.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>She insisted that her husband drive her to Missouri Baptist. The ER doctor soon confirmed that she was having a heart attack.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”> “A heart attack is death to the heart muscle caused by an interruption in blood flow to the muscle,” said John Hess III, MD, interventional cardiologist, Missouri Baptist Medical Center.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>“Those with attack symptoms should call 911 and not drive themselves, so they’re cared for by professionals in the field. Some people have warning signs that they dismiss from days to hours. It’s alarming to me that most people only call 911 when they experience persistent, severe pain. Time is crucial. Long-term affects of severe heart muscle damage can lead to further complication. The sooner an artery is open, the chance of mortality and subsequent severe injury may be diminished by 50 percent.”
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“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Hill says,
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;”> “If I had to do it all over again, I would have called 911 for an ambulance. Had I coded in the car, my husband wouldn’t have known what to do. Instead, I should have stopped at the first hospital.”
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Since her heart attack, Hill has lost more than 25 pounds, is exercising regularly, eating heart-healthy meals and discovering new ways to shop for groceries. She’s even created new recipes after seeing a dietitian who taught her how to control her diabetes and blood pressure. Hill now encourages everyone she knows to do the same. And it’s working. Her sister has lost 100 pounds, and some of her co-workers have lost significant amounts of weight.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>“At 56, with 28 grandchildren, I have a lot of lives to influence,” she said.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Hill was recognized as a heart attack survivor in 2011 by the American Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women” program. Dr. John Hess was keynote speaker and asked her to stand to be recognized. Guests applauded her courage and her dedication to survival and her new, heart-healthy successes.
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“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>‘Heart of the Family’
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“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Hill and her family are attending Missouri Baptist Medical Center’s “Heart of the Family,” a free heart education event “font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;”> 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. “font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Saturday, Feb. 4. at “font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;”> Missouri “font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;”> Baptist Medical Center “font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;”>, 3015 N. Ballas Rd.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;”> Advance registration is recommended. Enter at Main Entry or North Entry/Building D. Free garage/surface parking.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>In its 19th year to honor American Heart Month, this event offers families free screenings, family entertainment including “Babaloo” and hand-on activities, tastings of the latest heart-healthy products on the market, two physician lectures, Heart Center tours and more.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;”> Call 314-996-LIFE or 1-800-392-0936 or visit
“http://www.missouribaptist.org/”>www.missouribaptist.org
