UPDATE 4/6/23

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far. Jeanette is still having a difficult time, despite the surgery. Between the hospital bills, non-stop doctor, medication and diagnostic testing copays, she is struggling and cannot afford crucial testing and scans. Please keep Jeanette in your prayers and PLEASE help by contributing what you can.

UPDATE 3/3/23

Jeanette is going to be having surgery on Monday to have an internal defibrillator implanted. Please continue to keep her in your thoughts and prayers....and please SHARE!

UPDATE

Jeanette has been back in the hospital for 9 days. She lost feeling below the waist due to a spinal fracture which most likely occurred during automated compressions to save her life when she had her heart attack. She has also been wearing an external defibrillator but needs to have an internal defibrillator implanted surgically so she can move forward with the intense treatment and therapy necessary to treat her back - in addition to cardiac therapy. Please keep Jeanette in your prayers...and SHARE, SHARE, SHARE!!!

Hi. My name is Christina Daniels, and I am raising funds to help my sister, Jeanette Golden. On September 21, 2022, Jeanette, age 57, experienced a major heart attack - one they call a "widow-maker." She had NO prior history of heart problems. The emergency services team who responded insisted she was just having a panic attack and sent the cardiac unit away, significantly delaying appropriate emergency medical treatment. After arriving at the hospital almost a full hour and 20 minutes after the first call to 911, she was finally appropriately assessed and transported via Life Flight from Jefferson Hospital to Cooper Trauma Center in Camden. She died on the way but, fortunately, was brought back.

Jeanette's "health insurance" is not contributing anything towards her Life Flight transportation. In addition to being unable to work, Jeanette has incurred an "emergency transportation" bill for the helicopter ride that saved her life totaling $56,932.34.

My sister is currently wearing a "heart vest" that will shock her heart into rhythm if it stops beating. The cost for that is $1,500 a month. She will eventually need surgery to implant an internal defibrillator, even further compromising her life because of the limitations it imposes - including the ability to drive. She's only 57 years old. Her two young adult sons are trying to help her, but their resources are very limited, and they both have their own health issues, as do I.

Perhaps you should hear my sister's experience in her own words:

"If you are a woman or love a woman, ATTENTION!! This is still happening. Please read. As I was literally dying on my couch from a Stemi Heart Attack (100% blockage where only 12% of people survive), the EMT came in and said, "No emergency, she is having a panic attack." As I was saying " I love you" to my sons because I knew I was dying, the EMTs told them to step away because they were upsetting me and making my "panic attack" worse. The cardiac arrest team showed up, and the EMTs, with no testing done and with total authority, sent the team I needed most away. I WAS DYING and because I was screaming "GOD help me" because of searing pain, I was not treated for the heart attack I was having. I am still suffering greatly from what happened, but I have to tell my story to help. If I can save even one woman or educate an EMT so they never make this horrible mistake, it will be worth it. I have to tell my story, but I can't do it all at once since I am having many difficulties. I will write as I can. I beg, if you are a woman or love a woman, you read my story. Blessings.

Panic Attack: part 2 - No sirens for me. On 9/21/2022, at around 11:55 pm, I woke from a deep sleep with what I thought initially was raging heartburn. I got up and ran to get Pepto. After chugging it, I started to sweat and get dizzy. I called out to my sons for help. I collapsed on the couch in agony. They said they would drive me to the ER. I knew I needed professional help immediately and loudly said, "911 now, heart attack, heart attack, HEART ATTACK." My son called 911 and told the dispatcher, "Come now, my mom is having a heart attack." He had to call 911 three times as 15-20 minutes passed, and no one came. When they finally showed up, I was on the couch screaming, "Help me, God," mixed with saying, "I love you," to my sons. The male EMT said, "Oh, it's a panic attack," as he walked in the door. They asked me what was going on and pulled my sons aside. I told them I had insane pain in arm, jaw and chest. They calmly and slowly put a blood pressure cuff on me and became frustrated when they could not get a reading. They then put on the EKG leads, ran the EKG and again got frustrated because two of the leads popped off. At that point, a cardiac resuscitation team of paramedics came in. The EMTs firmly told them to leave and said it was a panic attack. I was in and out of consciousness but was very clear when conscious and my sons were very clear about everything that happened. Seeing a total lack of urgency or kindness, my sons insisted they get me to the hospital. The EMTs yelled at them to back off because they would only make my panic attack worse. The EMTs loaded me into the ambulance, and we sat outside my home for 10 minutes without moving while they talked, attempted and failed an IV and discussed their visit to a local restaurant. Without sirens, the ambulance began to move. Slowly, we made our way to the hospital. I knew I was dying; why no sirens? WHY NO SIRENS? During the ride, the one EMT next to me ran an EKG. I heard them say, "Oh shit, it's a stemi ." Then I heard the panicked mumbling. "Protocol says we should take her to the field, what do we do? Oh shit!" I looked out the back window of the ambulance. No emergency vehicle was following us. No lights. No sirens. And then I heard the ambulance turn signal go on. "Click, click, click, click" as they waited for cars to go by before turning into the hospital driveway. As soon as the ambulance pulled in, everything changed. The ER staff was yelling at the EMTs, "Why did you break protocol?" I heard words like "stemi", "cardiac arrest," and "helicopter." The ER staff put in two IVs, gave me aspirin and the flight crew arrived. One flight paramedic was furious with the EMTs and was very loud in expressing his frustration. So many "Why's." As I was rushed outside and wheeled under the spinning helicopter blades, it was time to make my peace. I knew I was going. I said my prayers, asked for forgiveness if I ever caused anyone pain forgave those who caused me pain, and one of my last thoughts was, "I don't understand. What did I do wrong? Why no sirens for me?" I started to cry and prayed that somehow what happened to me would make those EMTs know what they did wrong and they would learn never to make assumptions again. As I left my body, I was overwhelmed with grief; "Why no sirens for me?" And then there was peace."

Fortunately, thanks to the staff on the helicopter and the cardiac unit at Cooper, my sister Jeanette survived.

My sister is one of the kindest people I know. She has spent most of her life giving back. For over two decades, she volunteered as an event organizer for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. She organized fundraisers for local families who lost homes to fires, volunteered as a paramedic for many years, and helped needy children by taking them in, caring for them, and eventually adopting one. She was even recognized as "Citizen of the Year" for everything she'd accomplished.

Jeanette has dedicated her life to helping others. Now, she is the one who needs help. The medical bills are crushing her. Having just experienced a major heart attack, the last thing that she needs is stress if she hopes to make it through this terrible time, but with overwhelming bills and the uncertainty of how she is going to survive physically and financially, the stress is fast becoming more than she can handle.

Please, find it in your heart to help. Please, please help.