Dr. David Elison
, Interventional Cardiologist

"This was a surprise to me, and completely changed my expected summer. Ambulance had taken me to a nearby hospital and my son's biking friend, who is a nurse at the UW Hospital Heart Institute, urged him to consider taking me to UW Hospital. That's what we did.

We had appointments for telemed meetings with the cardiologist (I did not have one prior to this), along with many tests and scans in prep for the transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Also, I needed to get some dental work done, which took time.

Then, I was given a date for the TAVR -- August 13, 2024. However on August 1, 2024, I woke to find myself on my kitchen floor. Knees were sore and giant goose egg on my forehead along with plenty of black and blue bruises. My son called the UW Hospital and they told him to bring me in ASAP, which he did. I was put into an alarm bed so that if I got up the alarm would let nurses know I was up. So I was watched over with great care. The team of nurses was a wonderful, compassionate group of caring people.

My Interventional Cardiologist was very kind and patient. He seemed to genuinely care. I know he has a young family at home yet he spent lots of time with me (absorbing my anxiety and reassuring me). They were able to move my TAVR date up to August 6, 2024. I had said my prayers and was as prepared for whatever lay ahead as I could be. Things seemed to have gone well.

Dr. Elison was at my bedside, talking gently to me to waken me after surgery. For such a young person he truly did seem to be gifted in his ability to feel what I felt and to say what I needed to hear. He was nothing short of wonderful. Every time I saw him in person he extended his hand to take mine in a caring connection. He has no idea how comforting that was for me. (Decades ago my own dad had passed less than 24 hours after OHS to replace is mitral valve, and I have missed him mightily all these years.)

Dr. Elison's hand was not as large as my dad's hands, but the temperature and texture felt just like my dad's hands decades ago. Without knowing it, Dr. Elison provided great comfort to me. I was very lucky to have happened on him."

Posted by Dale Mabren, Aortic Valve, Valve Replacement, 08/06/2024