Compassionate, capable, and caring co-workers is the subject of this week’s Feel-Good Friday.
Marty Baham, a radiology technician, had just started his day at UChicago Medicine AdventHealth GlenOaks when he faced a life-threatening situation – an aortic dissection in his renal artery, a critical blood vessel running from the heart to the kidneys. This type of tear is often fatal, but Baham was about to defy the odds.
Thanks to the prompt response from his colleagues at GlenOaks, the expertise of the cardiovascular surgical team at UChicago Medicine, and the unwavering support from his brother, fellow team members, and friends, Baham’s life was saved.
“This is true divine intervention,” said Donna Fitzpatrick, GlenOaks director of radiology.
A crucial role in Baham’s survival was played by CT technologists Tiffany Spino and Aiman Madani at GlenOaks. Madani noticed Baham in distress while parked next to his car, appearing to be asleep. Sensing something was wrong, Madani quickly alerted Spino, who took immediate action by assessing Baham’s condition and contacting the hospital’s emergency department for assistance.
“Initially, I thought he was sleeping,” said Spino, a longtime friend of Baham who was concerned about his well-being because of the blistering heat that day. “I said to him, `What are you doing? You’re going to die of heat stroke.’’’ Baham opened his eyes, looked confused and tried to speak but slurred his words. That’s when Spino called for help, fearing he was having a stroke.
He soon was airlifted by helicopter to UChicago Medicine [hospital] in Hyde Park for emergency surgery, which lasted more than eight hours.
His co-worker Madani’s quick thinking no doubt saved Baham’s life. Granted, these are medical professionals, so it’s often part of the package. However, what distinguishes good doctors and nurses from the rest is their instinct and their skill in knowing when something is critical and how to address it. It is those minute decisions that make the difference between life or death. That, coupled with the caring and collegial relationship that Madani and Baham appear to have, is one of the reasons Baham’s life was spared. Sadly, these types of relationships are not found in every workplace, let alone a hospital.
In August 2024, I wrote about the tragic story of Denise Prudhomme, a Wells Fargo employee in the Phoenix area, who clocked into work at 7:00 a.m. on a Friday, and never clocked out. Prudhomme was found four days later, only because people on the floor complained of a foul smell. Prudhomme was discovered when another employee walked by her cubicle and saw Prudhomme slumped over her desk and unresponsive. The employee called security, and security called 9-1-1, where first responders pronounced her dead at the scene.
Two months later, an autopsy revealed that Prudhomme had a heart attack, caused by scar tissue around her heart. Who knows if a coworker had been present, attentive, and took action to help her, whether Prudhomme would be alive today.
This sad tale had many overarching themes, one of them being the state of loneliness that exists in the workplace, and the lack of care and follow-through from employers. Thankfully, Baham, and his co-workers at UChicago Med GlenOaks hospital do not appear to have that problem. His co-workers’ commitment–to see Baham not just saved, but healed–went beyond ensuring he had the proper care to ensuring he was also recuperating well:
After spending more than three weeks recuperating at the hospital, Baham was discharged to a rehabilitation hospital. During his time at the hospital, Spino and Brittney Mollicone, a UChicago Medicine AdventHealth GlenOaks ultrasound technologist, visited with him and stayed in touch regularly. The UChicago Medicine AdventHealth GlenOaks radiology team is a tightknit group. “It’s like a family,” Baham said. “We’re constantly doing stuff for each other.”
Spino, Mollicone and Baham emphasized that the emergency care he received at UChicago Medicine AdventHealth GlenOaks that day was the same high level of care that anyone in his situation would receive at the hospital. “This is what we do every day,” Baham said.
Fitzpatrick, though, said Baham’s survival hinged on more than excellent medical care. “This is about the spirit in this place, about living the mission and it coming to life,” she said. “Helping out your coworkers like that is not above and beyond. It’s just who we are. The compassion and dedication shown to Marty, even when the situation seemed impossible, is exactly what we’re here to do – to care for the whole person: body, mind and spirit.”
Perhaps the staff at UChicago Medicine AdventHealth GlenOaks should be a MAHA pilot project for how to not only keep people alive, but to care for the holistic individual, whether they are a patient or the person you work next to.
