Help Suzanne recover from brain aneurysm

We are writing this message on behalf of our mom, Suzanne. We are asking for help affording the physical, speech and occupational therapy that she requires after suffering a ruptured brain aneurysm, an ischemic stroke and a seizure in late September of 2023.

After a 12 hour surgery, our mom’s surgeon informed us that he had successfully coiled the aneurysm, but that the bleed in her brain was incredibly severe. He warned us that if she beat the odds and made it through the next 10 days of vasospasms (which generally occur in the two weeks following a subarachnoid hemorrhage), it would be a lengthy and difficult recovery process. Due to excessive brain bleeding, our mom suffered through 21 days of vasospasms and entered into a coma for nearly two months. A week before she woke up, we visited her on her 61st birthday. We played her favorite music and spoke about childhood stories and told her how much we loved her. We were overjoyed when she began singing along to music a week later. That day, she also responded to us, telling us: "I love you."

As soon as she emerged from the coma, her insurance provider denied her care in a skilled nursing facility by telling us that a feeding tube and breathing tube was medical care that could "technically" be done at home. This was a horrific moment for us, as we knew that we could never have cared for our mother medically. We felt powerless and hopeless. We were lucky enough that her doctors and social worker at Washington Hospital Center appealed and pushed for her to be admitted to the National Rehabilitation Hospital.

She improved at NRH, but ultimately after about a month there, insurance once again stopped her coverage. Social workers at NRH pushed us to quickly move her to a different facility to avoid any charges and she was discharged to a skilled nursing facility. This facility could not provide adequate care, and their medical neglect resulted in an infection, causing her to be readmitted to the hospital after only a week. Once discharged from the hospital, my mom moved to another skilled nursing facility. The nurses and therapy staff worked hard to get my mom back on the right track and we were overjoyed to see her improving once again. However, insurance again denied her coverage and we were forced to quickly find a new place for her to heal. She is now in a small assisted living facility that is being funded by long term disability through her employer. However, her level of therapy at this facility will be determined by what the insurance approves, and her insurance has demonstrated time and time again that they will jump at any chance to deny her coverage.

Our mom's medical condition is incredibly complex and deserves to be viewed with as much nuance as her condition is complicated. This was not simply a stroke, it was a catastrophic event that most of her medical team originally believed she would die from. Throughout this unthinkable tragedy, the insurance company has consistently tried to stop coverage as soon as possible, denying every week as we continually appealed. It has been a deeply anxiety inducing and dehumanizing experience. She has been consistently denied coverage, at times forcing us to accept next steps that have been unrealistic and harmful to our mom's recovery.

Many people may know our mother from her many years as a Brookside Nature Center naturalist and more recently, BNC's manager. She is dedicated to environmental education and has worked hard to make sure that every visitor to the nature center, whether it be a young kid enjoying summer camp, or a retiree visiting with their family, had a fun and educational experience. Her passion for her work is inspiring and her love for nature continues today. She loves her children and our three cats. She loves her friends and her co-workers. She is a good person and deserves every chance to heal. We have done everything we could to make sure that our mom gets the best care possible. We now turn to her community and ask that you help give Suzanne the resources she needs to recover. From the beginning, we have been warned over and over again that her recovery would be lengthy and difficult. We have always responded that we will be with our mom through every step of the recovery process. We hope that you are able to contribute whatever you can to our mom and her recovery.

After conferring with a speech therapist, an occupational therapist and a physical therapist, we have determined that our mom will need two days a week with each discipline to supplement the minimal therapy covered by insurance. The rates are as follow per session: $115 for her speech language pathologist, $150 for her physical therapist, and $170 for her occupational therapist. For a year, this would be $41,760. We have decided to set the goal for $45,000 to cover any additional equipment needed, as hidden costs have constantly appeared throughout this process. Any excess funds will entirely go to our mom and her recovery.

Thank you so much for any amount you are able to contribute.

Erin and Patrick Bode