Keep Joanne’s family close by while she is ill

Hello, we are Michele, Jason and Jonathan. Our mother, Joanne Laperle, was admitted last week to the ICU at Tampa General Hospital with a mass in her throat obstructing her airway. Because of where the mass is located, she could not be intubated but required an emergency tracheostomy and remains on a ventilator. Due to the holiday weekend and staffing shortages she is still awaiting biopsy, which will determine diagnosis and a plan forward. The three of us flew to Tampa from Vermont the day before Thanksgiving to be at her bedside and support her and her husband, Chummy, who recently celebrated his 80th birthday. We are sharing a hotel room and using Lyft to get to and from the hospital. Five days into this unexpected trip, we are coming to realize that our stay will be longer than we imagined. Medical services in real life do not move as quickly as E.R., Chicago Hope, and Grey’s Anatomy would have us think.

We have created a site on Caring Bridge where are providing updates as they become available. If you would like to help with expenses, we will be grateful for contributions made through this site, or free of charge to Jason, Michele, or me through Venmo or PayPal.

Thank you for your consideration.