Dave is getting a kidney today!

JULY 25th! Copied from Dave’s FB!

Well, I've been blessed again. I am currently at Duke University in Durham and Thursday morning, I will have a kidney transplant. I am so grateful for all of your support, well wishes, and prayers. I look forward to getting back to somewhat of a normal life and back to work. This has happened rather quickly, which is a good thing. I expect to be in the hospital for 5 to 7 days barring no complications. 

July 1st FB update.

Escape from WakMed is complete! I am at home with my infusion. Duke is looking hard to find me a new heart. Thank you for all your support and well wishes. It is amazing to have so many friends all over the place rooting for me. Special thanks to those who took care of me on my visit to the ED and 3B. Staff was outstanding!  I made many new friends.  I’m blessed to have the best docs and PA’s leading me through this. God has more work for me to do!

June 30th FB update.

Well, here is an update. I remain at Wakemed on 3B. The plan was for me to go home today on a dobutamine trip. I failed the Milnirone drip due to problems with my blood pressure. I have felt much better with the dobutamine drip however, apparently yesterday afternoon, I had an 18 beat run of V-tach. I did not feel it or feel bad during it, but it happened. So now I have to spend another night at Wakemed. 

Any more V-tach, I will be transferring to Duke hospital for admission. My dock says they would place me on a balloon pump and try to expedite my heart transplant. If I can maintain with no more V-tach, then I get to go home tomorrow and will continue to wait for transplant. I firmly believe that God is in control and his will shall be done. It’ll be done his way in his time with his guidance. I so appreciate the many notes, thoughts, and prayers.

Dave

June 26 2023 an update from Dave’s FB page.

Well, here is a little update on my journey for a new heart. I find myself here at WakeMed admitted for a few days. Have had a marked slowdown in my energy for a couple of weeks. I had a right heart cath to look at the pressures on the right side of the heart. That didn’t help us too much. So today I am admitted and have had a PICC line placed and we are going to try to start me on a new medication called milnirone which supposed to reduce the stress on the heart and make for an improved pump. I will be here a couple of days while we get this adjusted and hopefully then back home. If I feel better, I can go back to work, if not then we will worry about that if it’s an issue. This will be 24/7 infusion so if you see me walking around you’ll know what it is. I have requested margarita flavor, but not sure they can get it. This does move me up the list for transplant. I think there’s this, FTD (fixing to die) and FTDRS (fixing to die real soon) which I am not on, thank the good Lord!

I am very grateful for all the help and support that all of you have shown. My GoFundMe has been amazing. I am thankful to God for each day, as they are a gift. I am going to do my part to get through this. For those of you who are my prayer buddies, I appreciate you and ask for your continued support in prayer!

Hi, my name is Angie and I am asking for your help so my dear friend Dave Bowen can get a new heart. I had asked Dave to give me some information so I could tell you why he is so deserving of your help, but instead, he gave me this....

David Bowen

Henderson NC

Brother passed from kidney CA

Two sisters in their 70's still kicking.

I graduated from Appalachian State University in 1988. I took my EMT class as an elective at ASU because no one in my family had any medical training and my parents were getting older. I started my career with Watauga Rescue and eventually worked for the ambulance service there part-time. I liked my EMT class so much, I took an EMT Intermediate class, and passed! When I graduated, I went to work for the Henderson Fire Department and Vance County Fire and Ambulance. I did this for about a year, as my mother recovered from surgery. In June of 1989, I started my career here as a nurse tech at WakeMed. Soon after I started volunteering with Cary Area Rescue and signed up for a paramedic class. For several years I worked for WakeMed, and volunteered for Cary, getting some experience. I met my wife during this time, and we were married. In 1994 I started working full-time at Cary EMS, and part-time at the hospital. When Cary ED opened, I started working as a tech there. I worked as the Equipment tech while at Wake, and during maternity leave for a co-worker. I had been bitten by the emergency services bug! I started taking pre-reqs for nursing. In August of 1998, I took the leap of faith, left my full-time job, and started Nursing School! I then started working weekends at Wake Raleigh and going to school M-F. I graduated in 2000 from Nursing school and started working as a nurse here in the ED!

In 2004, I was blessed with beautiful twins, a boy and a girl. Jake and Casey Bowen came into the world. That was a crazy time. (They are now 18 years old) I continued to work at WakeMed, and have also done some moonlighting at Duke Health Raleigh, and Betsy Johnson in Dunn, always in emergency services. In 2013, my wife and I went our separate ways.

I began doing charge at some point along the way, further into the thick of things. I did this up until 2019! Two things happened that year that impacted what I was doing, Covid and my overall health. I stepped down as charge, to assist with PRC scores, and to decrease the stress on both my mind and body. I have currently settled into serving as an ED Follow Up Nurse. I am still learning all the details, but I love working and helping people. I also continue to serve as the EMS Liaison for WakeMed Raleigh since 2003.

I am currently 56 years old. At the age of 23, a small area of calcification was noted around my heart during a CXR. Over the next 7 years, this area completely encircled my heart. This ultimately caused atrial enlargement, and after being married for just a few months, we were faced with the possibility of open heart surgery. There is no definitive diagnosis for this issue, but the running thought is that I had pericarditis as a young man, and that started the calcification process. We sought additional guidance from a specialist at DUMC, who worked with me over the next several years. There were about 16 cardioversions, a couple of heart caths, a 16-hour ablation, and still, in 2000, I had to have open heart surgery to remove the largest part of my pericardium. I have had to live a large part of my adult life in a-fib. We treat these folks all the time, but you just don't realize how much it takes from you. It depletes your energy and your drive but your brain works just fine. It is constantly reminding your tired body about all the things that need to be done. Over the last 3 years or so, I have developed advanced heart failure. Life is about choices and what I am willing to spend my energy on. Thank God, we now have a CHF specialist from DUMC that collaborates with our patients here. I cannot say enough about Dr. Stuart Russell. He has helped me as much as he can, and I have delayed this a bit to try and get my kids on their feet, as they currently both reside with me. I now need a heart transplant. I am the damn Tin Man! I have dedicated my life, to helping others in their time of need. I have 0 regrets about that choice. I do find it very difficult to ask, but I am going to need some help. I need that in prayer and any way finically that you can help. I am currently on the transplant list and have been told that I am likely to have my surgery anytime in the next 3 months. I have delayed asking for your help because it is hard for me to do so. I always want to be independent and take care of myself, and my kids. I can't see how to do this without my WakeMed family, and my friends. I want to get better and keep working. At my current rate, without surgery, that will not happen.

If you have never thought about this, let me assure you some heavy thoughts go along with this process. I am swirling in them. I want to be a good recipient because I know what a gift this is, and what it means for the donor. I have been working on weight loss and diabetes management. Both improved. But it still is scary. I am a Christian, and I am saved, I have faith in my God, for him to see me through, no matter the outcome. I believe it will be a successful surgery. I would appreciate, anything you have to offer in prayer. I have survived on this for the last several years.

If you are a WakeMed person, sick time would be very helpful. There are also some ways to donate money if that is easier for you. I know times are rough right now. Anything helps.

As you can see, Dave has spent his life giving with all his heart so much that he needs a new one to continue his work of giving back to his family and his community.