OhioHealth Hosts Stroke Dinner For Survivors
The month of May is very important in the world of stroke care. It is a time for awareness, and for giving back to those that have battled a stroke.
For the very first time OhioHealth Neuroscience hosted a special dinner for stroke survivors and their families.
A beautiful room with tablecloths, amazing food, smiles and plenty of hugs. Patients, their doctors and surgeons along with emergency department teams and paramedics all in the same room for the very first time.
But for each person to get here, to this day, there had to be some panic, where seconds counted, and life was not guaranteed.
For Elizabeth ‘Betsy’ Sebastian, that day and time was the afternoon of December 21st.
“I noticed my arm, would lift it and it would go right back down, couldn’t lift my leg either, and had trouble speaking,” Sebastian said.
She was watching her grandkids, and was rushed to OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital. She was having a stroke.
Soon after, Dr. Peter Pema of Riverside Radiology and Interventional Associates was called in for a procedure.
“With her case, she’s a miracle. I tell them that, they are all miracles. Leave it in God’s hands, and the team,” Dr. Pema said.
After the procedure to remove a clot in the brain, Betsy was on the road to recovery. Now, months later, she is here. This stroke dinner is meaningful for her. A chance to see everyone, from the nursing staff, to EMS crews, to once again seeing Dr. Pema.
“I had my 3 month checkup with Dr. Pema. He took a picture with me, I cried. It’s emotional, it was a miracle,” Sebastian said.
And special for those that helped save her life too.
“You don’t get to enjoy things in the moment, but an event like this. You see how special it is. You see that getting up at 2 in the morning, or whenever, this is why we do it, it’s worth it,” Dr. Pema said.
