Ron Weinstock's Fight for Recovery

It feels like a long journey, even though it has been a little over three months since a devastating hemorrhagic stroke ravaged my husband's life. It all started with a heavy rain, the kind that wakes you up at night and does not let you fall back asleep. On the morning of July 10th, it was clear that Ron, I, and our dog had to leave our house by the lake in Vermont because of rising waters. We stayed in an apartment above the garage, up the hill from the lake and the house. The next day, we could not leave because all the roads were closed. As the rain stopped and the level of the water in the house fell, we started moving things out to dry and drain. On July 12, some roads opened, and I left to attend to my work in the city. Ron decided to stay to take care of the house. He called me several times as I was driving home. The last time we spoke normally was at 11 pm on July 12th.

The next day, he didn't answer my texts or calls. By evening, I was so worried, I had knots in my stomach and could not sleep. I called a friend and told her that I was going to call the police to check on him. She suggested to wait until next morning. "He probably misplaced his phone or forgot to turn it on. It happens all the time to me." After I could not reach him in the morning of July 14th, I called the local police. They found him unconscious and barely responsive on the floor of the apartment above the garage. They rushed him to the local hospital, where he was found to be moderately responsive, moving his limbs and occasionally opening his eyes. Compiled tomography of his head showed large left-sided intracranial hemorrhage. A breathing tube was inserted, anti-seizure medication administered, and Ron was transferred to a larger a better equipped hospital—Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC)—where they inserted an external ventricular drain into his brain.

Ron and Natasha a few weeks before his stroke.

Ron tolerated the surgery well and was awake and aware shortly afterwards. His doctors were talking about sending him to a rehab facility. This did not happen, at least not right away. Two days later Ron fell into an extended period of sleep, a semi-coma of sorts, which medical professionals call an "obtunded state." He was clearly breathing, but unable to wake up or show any other signs of life. Apparently, the bleeding was subsiding, but significant edema developed instead and was expanding from the affected left to the right side of his brain. His breathing was fine in the beginning, until he developed pneumonia, and the doctors decided to reinsert his breathing tube. For weeks afterwards he did not open his eyes or wake up. He remained in this state for more than a month, intubated for his breathing and feeding, until the last week of August, when he came to gradually and the tubes were taken out, also gradually. It was an excruciatingly difficult time: driving to the hospital every day, hoping that maybe today would be different and he would wake up. I am enormously grateful to doctors, nurses, and the entire staff at DHMC, who were very supportive and wonderful, encouraging us to stay hopeful and give time for Ron's brain to recover.

As Ron was coming into consciousness, the care team at DHMC recommended to place him in a "skilled nursing facility," a.k.a nursing home, because he was paralyzed on the right side of his body and his speech and cognition were impaired: he had Broca's aphasia, which makes it difficult for you to say things clearly, even though you understand what is being said to you. People who saw Ron while he was in the hospital—his family and friends—were convinced that he should be given a chance in an acute rehabilitation facility. It took a lot of effort and persistence for us to find such a place. On September 12th, Ron was transferred to the Helen Hayes Rehabilitation Hospital. According to the admitting doctor's evaluation, "prognosis for near-term functional gain was favorable" and "optimal progress could not be achieved in a less intensive rehabilitation setting." The doctor prescribed an hour of physical, occupational, and speech therapy at least 5 days a week for a 6-to-8-week period of time. The proposed discharge date was November 6th.

Three weeks after his admittance to Helen Hayes, on October 4th, I received a call from Ron's case manager telling me that Ron's insurance, United Healthcare, would not pay for Ron's stay past October 6th, because they believed that he was not making enough progress in his recovery process. The specialists who were working with Ron closely—his therapists and his doctor—were shocked. They believed that Ron was making progress, but evidently the insurance company disagreed. A peer-to-peer conversation between the hospital doctor and the insurance representative was scheduled for the evening of October 5th. This did not succeed; I was told I had to move Ron out immediately, and that I either had to pay for his stay at Helen Hayes out of pocket or appeal the decision made by the insurance company. I chose the latter. Ron stayed at Helen Hayes for 10 more days, before I could find a suitable subacute rehab for him: Hebrew Home in Riverdale. He was transferred there on October 17th and is still there now.

I found Hebrew Home to be wonderful, with a developed comprehensive system of caring not only for patients, but also for their families. Therapists and nurses are skilled, caring, and accessible. Ron receives the same amount of therapy he did at Helen Hayes. He is improving gradually but slowly. I expect him to be released home in a few weeks. The next several months are going to be crucial in his recovery. Ron had a life-changing event that has greatly affected his family—including his daughters, Anya and Sandra—and everyone who loves him. The road to recovery is long, but we remain hopeful.

We are asking for support to pay for Ron's medical and nursing care as well as his rehabilitation services and equipment. Your donations go toward caregiving, therapeutic, medical, and other material support for Ron as well as a measure of financial and emotional stability for his wife and his daughters. We need your support to be able to maintain high-level, essential care and to help Ron have the best chance to recover.

More specifically, we are fundraising to cover the following expenses (denied by Ron’s medical insurance):

• Ambulance transport from Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH to Helen Hays Rehabilitation Hospital in West Haverstraw, NY: $5,000

• Ambulette transport from Helen Hays Hospital to Hebrew Home: $350

• A ten-day overstay at Helen Hayes Hospital: $23,000 (currently under appeal)

• Equipment for the apartment in anticipation of Ron’s homecoming: hospital bed, installation of grab bars, wheelchair, elevated toilet seat: yet undetermined costs.

• In-home nursing care: $300 daily.

Thank you very much, everyone. We greatly appreciate it!

Natasha Weinstock and Team Ron