My husband and I want to express our sincere gratitude to the doctors, nurses and staff at Nebraska Medicine.
On Wednesday, June 1, our son, Connor, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). The level of medical care and compassion we have received is amazing. ENT specialist Dr. Dwight Jonesand his staff worked swiftly to ensure Connor received all the necessary blood work and CT scans for an accurate diagnosis.
We arrived at Nebraska Medicine – Nebraska Medical Center at 3:00 p.m. (Our local physician in western Iowa had called the med center at 10:00 a.m. and they were able to get Connor in a few hours later.) By 5:00 p.m., he had all his tests completed. I later discovered that they kept the clinic open after hours to accommodate our needs.
After all the tests, Dr. Jones told us the hardest thing for a parent to hear – “there’s a very good chance your child has cancer.”
We wanted to stay strong for Connor and decided to take him to the circus that night – like we originally planned. After the circus, we received the worst phone call from Dr. Jones. I remember our exact conversation. He told us the oncologist had a chance to review Connor’s test results and wanted us to head to Nebraska Medicine – Nebraska Medical Center’s emergency department. Immediately.
Connor’s little sister prayed for green lights as the family made their way to the med center.
At that point, I broke down. The entire family was praying like we’ve never prayed before. Our 6-year-old daughter, Aubrey, was praying for green lights the entire way to the med center. Miraculously, every stop light on Dodge Street was green! (A miracle in itself.)
Once we arrived at the emergency department, Connor was immediately given fluids and later that evening he received a blood transfusion. The doctors told us Connor could have gone into kidney failure if he was not admitted. Thanks to the entire staff at Nebraska Medicine (and God working through them), my son’s life was saved.
After Connor was stabilized, the staff discovered his birthday was on Saturday. We had planned to cancel his party, but Child Life immediately stepped in and organized a celebration at the hospital. At least 30 of our closest family and friends came to the party. I saw Connor laugh for the first time since we arrived.
Dr. Jones surprised Connor with plastic snakes and frogs for his birthday.
Several hospital staff members learned that Connor likes snakes and art. Many dropped off birthday presents – including Dr. Jones – who stopped by several times to check on him. Dr. Jones also brought Connor new plastic snakes and poison dart frogs. I told Dr. Jones how much his phone call had scared me. He said, “good – that’s what you needed to hear to get him here ASAP!” Afterwards, Connor’s oncologist, Don Coulter, MD, sang him “happy birthday.” From my understanding, Dr. Coulter should stick with medicine and hold off on a music career!
I could go on and on about the amazing doctors, nurses and staff at Nebraska Medicine. Before becoming a mother, I worked in advertising, so I always pay attention to how businesses brand themselves. “Serious Medicine. Extraordinary Care.” is not just a tag line, it’s the truth! I can truly see Christ shining through the halls at Nebraska Medicine.
