Patient Testimonials
Joanne Bolin
A strong family history of heart disease and her knowledge as a registered nurse prompted Joanne Bolin to take action when she felt pain in her left arm while out for a casual walk.
She went to Regional Hospital where she was seen by Dr. Sridhar Sampath Kumar who inserted two stents to open Joanne's left anterior descending artery which was completely blocked. A third stent was placed a month later.
Two months after her procedures, Joanne, a mother and grandmother, resumed all of the activities she enjoys without limitations.
"I'm back to 100 percent. Dr. Sampath-Kumar and the staff at Regional were phenomenal."
Joyce Dougherty
After nine months of taking medications to control her heart arrhythmia, Joyce Dougherty chose to seek other options when the symptoms persisted. She was at work as a certified nurse anesthetist at Regional Hospital when she felt her heart fluttering and visited the emergency room where her arrhythmia was originally diagnosed.
Her heart would beat dangerously fast when she ran up hills and she'd often wake in the middle of the night with a racing heart. That is when Joyce determined the only racing in her life would come in the form of running and she chose to have an ablation, which burns those cells in the heart that cause an arrhythmia.
Dr. Matthew Stopper, cardiac electrophysiologist at Regional, performed the procedure and helped Joyce get back on track with her favorite athletic activities, without the disturbing heart rhythms or daily medication.
"I'm glad I went for the procedure and am cured, I trusted Dr. Stopper and knew he would do a good job."
Dr. Roger Fagerburg
A burning sensation in his chest while doing a routine swimming workout was enough for Dr. Rodger Fagerburg to get to his doctor, even after a recent echocardiogram and stress test showed normal function with his heart.
Dr. Fagerburg, an infectious disease specialist, learned he had severe coronary artery disease after having a catheterization.
Dr. Lear Von Koch performed CABG (Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting) and LIMA (Left Internal Mammary Artery).
Less than a month later, Dr. Fagerburg returned to work. He is an avid cyclist and he and his wife, Janet, enjoy ballroom dancing.
"You shouldn't ignore warning symptoms. Get checked, have faith in your doctors and listen to your body."
Lisa Nealon
"I can't believe how easy this is."
Cardiac surgery doesn't have to knock you down. In fact, it can pick you up -- just like it did for Scranton resident Lisa Nealon. Before coming to Regional, the active Scranton wife and mother was suffering from unexplained fatigue caused by a problem with her mitral valve.
After a valve replacement procedure at Regional, Lisa is back to enjoying her active lifestyle. “I can’t express how good my health is now.
Occasionally, when I’m out walking, I just stop and think, ‘I’ve had two heart surgeries, and I can’t believe how easy this is.’”
Tom Rafalko
With weak heart muscle function, Tom Rafalko was not an ideal candidate for open heart surgery.
The Scranton resident, who had four blocked arteries, was relieved when interventional cardiologist Sridhar Sampath Kumar told him there was a way to strengthen his heart function during surgery by using a ventricular assist device. The device took the burden of pumping blood off the heart allowing Dr. Kumar to open Tom's blockages safely.
Tom made a rapid recovery, has more energy and a new lease on life.