Touched By God: Donna Davis’s Patient Experience

It was a busy 13 months for south-sider Donna Davis.

“I had my life saved twice,” she said with a sense of pride and gratitude. “If it wasn’t for the unbelievable care I got at Mount Carmel Grove City, I don’t think I’d still be here.”

It all started with a graduation party she was supposed to attend. When she didn’t show up and didn’t respond, her son came to check on her. It’s a good thing he did. It turned out that a medication she was taking to manage a lung issue was actually causing a fluid buildup in her heart. “He said I had death written all over me,” Davis recalled.

It wasn’t an exaggeration. Not long after she arrived at the hospital, her heart stopped. “If someone hadn’t been in the room with me, that could have been it. But they had it restarted in 60 seconds and brought me back.”

She spent the next eight days in the hospital – the first steps in a long journey back. That included having a pacemaker and defibrillator installed to help regulate her heart.

“I got such amazing care,” she said. “Hannah, my ICU nurse, was amazing – like an angel. Everyone was just so kind. It’s a special place, touched by God.”

As impressed as she was with her care, Davis wasn’t planning on returning to Mount Carmel Grove City anytime soon. Her failing gallbladder had other plans.

“I came back in July with sepsis from my gallbladder,” she said. Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that can lead to tissue damage and organ failure. It requires immediate medical attention.

“I had six different teams of doctors coordinating my care to remove my gallbladder and fight the infection,” she added. “The way they worked together was just amazing. It was over the top, the kind of care I got. The kindness. You could tell it was a calling for them, not just a job. I made so many special friends there.”

Those friends and many others continue to root for her recovery, which is proceeding in small steps. She’s back to cleaning the house (she likes it tidy!) and looks forward to some of her other favorite activities.

“My goal now is to get back to walking and to church,” Davis shared. “I just need to get my heart function back to a normal level.”

She’s on her way, thankfully. But it was a pretty busy 13 months.