HUP nurse Megan Holland’s parents, John and Bernadette Marron
Family members express thanks for the HUP staff who saved their loved ones.
Megan Holland MSN, CCRN, a nursing clinical coordinator with the Rapid Response Team, shared thanks for the Heart and Vascular Intensive Care Unit (HVICU) team:
“My dad had open heart surgery at HUP and had some complications while in the HVICU and needed to go back for a second surgery immediately. The HVICU team acted quickly and stabilized him immediately. The surgery was successful and he is doing great and just ran a 5K while holding up a sign thanking his Penn Medicine nurses and doctors! He is incredibly grateful, as is my entire family. As a staff member I want to recognize all of these amazing health care workers and thank them for saving my dad's life.”
Tina McDonnell, the wife of a patient, wrote to acknowledge Ryan Rutkowski, MSN, a nurse with the Neuro Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Rutkowski recently won the Neuroscience Nursing Daisy Award.
HUP nurse Ryan Rutkowski
“Ryan Rutkowski is our Super Hero Nurse. My husband David was in the NICU after brain surgery to remove a cancerous tumor. David had been discharged and went home, but his incision was leaking spinal fluid. He was readmitted and had an external drain put in,” wrote McDonnell. “I heard Ryan ask David if he felt a flutter in his chest, and my husband said yes. Next thing I know, many nurses rushed into the room and were working on David after they got him stable. Ryan explained to me that David's heart rate had dropped very low; at one point it was zero. David had a temporary pacemaker put in and tests were run. All during this, Ryan was by David's side. In my eyes, Ryan saved my husband's life and for that we will be forever grateful. The way the team and Ryan worked to ensure David remained breathing was incredible.”