Make a difference to the Poehlsen Family

Roger and Christine (Zeman) Poehlsen reside in the Village of Airmont in Rockland County, New York where they have raised two wonderful children. Over the past 18 months Roger has experienced multiple severe health setbacks that have left the family devastated emotionally and financially. They have suffered tremendously these past few years yet did not want to burden friends, neighbors and people of goodwill with requests for help. Roger and Christine have supported their family with their small construction and landscape nursery business. Below is an overview of just how much Roger underwent and is still trying to recover from. Please read on to see just how long Roger has been fighting and how much the Poehlsen Family is in need of your help.

On September 26th, 2022 Roger suffered a brain aneurysm. He needed to be flown to Westchester Medical where he underwent emergency brain surgery. After two months of strenuous rehabilitation at Good Samaritan Rehabilitation and Helen Hayes Rehabilitation his doctor cleared him to return to work so he could keep their business running which includes their health insurance coverage.

Sadly after making a miraculous recovery from his brain aneurysm Roger suffered a second ruptured brain aneurysm (grade 5) on December 19, 2022 only two months after his first. He was only in the second week of his return to work. Roger lost consciousness while on a piece of machinery at his nursery. Fortunately a co-worker found him and called for help.

Roger required immediate emergency surgery again that day and was later brought to Northern Westchester Medical Hospital where he underwent a Craniectomy (removal of a section of the skull). The next morning, he was transferred to Lenox Hill Hospital in NYC in critical condition and stayed in a medically induced coma in the neuro critical ICU for a month. Christine was told that if Roger did make it through the next few months the recovery will be years in the making with limits on just how much Roger’s abilities will recover.

During this trying time, Roger had multiple mini seizures/strokes requiring several cerebral angiograms to stop the blood vessels contracting in his brain, had a Tracheotomy done, was put on a ventilator, had a feeding tube placed into his stomach, blood transfusions, developed blood clots, had double pneumonia, had tubes in his lungs to remove air pockets that formed, Ventriculostomy (drainage tube in the back of his head) draining the blood from the aneurysm that was flowing into the cerebral spinal fluids.

When Roger was finally relieved from the medically induced coma there were no movements in his entire body with the exception of his eyes. Over several days he slowly started moving his left side but still no movements on his right side. His right side swelled up to about double the size, he lost peripheral vision in his right eye and suffered severe headaches.

The next transfer was to the LTAC unit at Henry J. Carter Hospital in Harlem NYC where he remained at very high risk and caught Covid. While there Roger learned to speak a few words through his trach while he was slowly introduced to eating thick fluids. He still had no ability to move his right side.

After a month at Henry J. Carter Hospital he was then transferred to Pine Valley Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center for 3 months of physical, occupational, speech and cognitive therapy. Roger had to learn how to do everything all over again. A brace was customized for his leg to help him stand and walk a few feet with the help therapists. He lost all muscle strength due to not getting up or out of bed for 3 months and the stroke still affected his entire right side. Simple things like sitting upright was a challenge in itself. He was only able to get into a wheelchair at this point only by a Hoyer lift. Things like speaking, eating soft thick food like pudding to learn how to swallow again were daily struggles. Roger started to get movement back on his right side but continued to have very bad headaches. He then went back to Northern Westchester Medical Hospital where another surgery (the Cranioplasty) was necessary to put a synthetic bone material back into his head to form a skull as up to that point it was an open hole.

After leaving the ICU at Northern Westchester Medical Hospital he was then transferred to Helen Hayes Rehabilitation Center’s Acute Care Unit for two months. He caught Covid there twice, which delayed all his therapy. They started to teach him how to walk, get dressed, brush his teeth, speak, eat and to wheel himself in his wheelchair with the help of 3 therapists.

He was next transferred back to Pine Valley Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center for Subacute Care where they continued his ongoing therapy programs. He developed an abdominal hernia where the feeding tube was introduced. He was then transferred to Good Samaritan Hospital for surgery to correct it.

Finally, after 9 months of being at 5 different Hospitals and 3 different Rehabilitation Centers he was able to come home to be with his wife and children. Roger missed an entire school year while being hospitalized. Christine was forced to run the family business, that she was not totally familiar with, while needing to leave their children many days to be at his side. Modifications had to be made in their home since Roger was in a wheelchair. Insurance allowed only 3 weeks of home care to help him adjust to all the new modifications and getting around in his home.

Roger continues his therapy programs today as an outpatient at Good Samaritan Hospital Rehabilitation. Although he has come a very long way and is quite a medical miracle he still has a very long road to recovery (years). He will require lifelong follow-up care after the craniectomy. Roger has a great attitude and pushes every day to get better. Some days are better than others but he recently said,” GOD pulled me through this not once but twice and I have to do everything I can to get better and figure out why I survived”.

Roger still has ongoing headaches, pain and numbness on his entire right side, many challenges, limitations and disabilities, cognitive limitations, severe aphasia, peripheral vision issues and requires 24-hour care. Christine now needs to provide that care, while trying to keep the business afloat and assist her High School age kids. As if that’s enough Christine also suffers from Multiple Sclerosis. Selling machinery to pay bills has already begun and their families have been contributing to the paying of bills.

If you know Roger personally you know him as an honest, quiet, thoughtful, giving, person who would give the shirt off his back to help another human being. The Poehlsens are your average kind family that are dealing with a crushing blow. They have been through all this while navigating holidays and family milestones. The Poehlsens really need our help to weather a difficult time in their lives and an uncertain future.

Thank you for any support you can give!

Friends of Roger Poehlsen and Family