A Solemn Plea

I don't have a pacemaker, my dad does. I'm doing this as a favor to him since he doesn't know much about computers. It's hard to ask other for help. And I don't know how to say this without it sounding horrible.

My dad has had his pacemaker for about five years now, and he was worried about the battery running out since I think he uses it a alot. I called the nurses in Indianapolis and they tell me these batteries can last anywhere from five to seven years. This is a real worry for our family. My dad needs this battery replaced but we don't have anywhere near the sufficient funds for it.

This is further complicated since he has been off of his medication for about three years now for the same reason, no money. Back when he got it installed we all had good jobs and good insurance alongside. Things have changed since then.

He's been eating super-healthy, elsewise he might not be here today. Friends, we need your prayers and support.

We now live in Texas, my dad lives across the border in Mexico. Any help would be appreciated immensely.

A website has been created for this purpose, to raise enough attention and get my dad the help he needs.

I hope and pray that this is God's will, and that His spirit will move us all to do what is right.

8 Comments

Website address

by drakesav - 2010-01-07 04:01:57

http://saccharinehope.blogspot.com/

Mexico Medical Treatment

by repwork - 2010-01-07 05:01:54

Why is dad in Mexico because medical treatment down there sucks.....

Plea

by SMITTY - 2010-01-07 06:01:42

I can understand your concern, but there is no way you or your father can know how much his pacemaker is pacing his heart or how much longer his pacemaker battery will last without having a pacemaker checkup. The nurses telling you these batteries can last from five to seven years means nothing, except that is the standard answer put out by the pacemaker manufacturers. Take my pacemaker for example, I got it in Sept. 2000 and was told the expected battery life was 5 to 7 years. I had to get my pacemaker replaced in Oct. 2009 because of a dead battery.

You will find many people here that have had pacemaker batteries much longer than the 5 to 7 years predicted battery life. Of course there are a few that have had them to last less than the 5 to 7 years. Again the only way to know if the battery is approaching the end of its life is to have it checked. I have seen some of our members report their pacemaker battery has lasted 12 to 15 years and in one member reported a battery life of 17 years and another 21 years.

The pacemaker checkup will have to be done before he can a replacement anyway. As you know your father will not be able to just walk in and say I need a new pacemaker because I think my battery has died.

The seriousness of your father's predicament can possibly be better determined if we knew why he got the pacemaker. Tell us that and I'm sure some here can make a better comment than I have.

I will say one thing, if he is like most of us, when he got his pacemaker he was lead to believe that the pacemaker keeps our heart beating 100% of the time. That is true for very few people that get a pacemakers. More often than not our pacemakers are an on demand devices. By that I mean the pacemaker monitors our heart's function and helps out only when it determines that our heart's natural pacemaker is not keeping our heart beating as it should. This is can be an intermittent event. The heart's pacemaker can, for many reasons, fail to do its job for a few minutes to a few hours and then go back to working as if nothing happened. Just like a headache. As you know your head can be splitting for no known reason then the head ache goes away. The difference being that you have a pacemaker to assist in maintaining a good heart beat when needed, while we take pain medication for the headache.

Your plea for funds to replace his pacemaker may be very urgent or it could be ill timed and the only way you can know for certain is to have a pacemaker checkup.

So my suggestion is to get your father to have the pacemaker checkup and know for certain if he has reason, or not, for concern.

Good luck,

Smitty

Not Neccessary

by Juan - 2010-01-07 07:01:43

Repwork,

Was your question really necessary? It could be that is home for him. Or I guess he could ask you why do you live in Georgia.

While you may can get good health care in some places in Georgia, in some places in Georgia it sucks. My experience has shown that no country and no state provides good health care services everywhere, everytime.

Catholic hospitals

by lenora - 2010-01-07 10:01:10

Most Catholic hospitals focus on health outreach to the poor (their term not mine) and maintain special funds for cases such as your dad's.

Thank You

by drakesav - 2010-01-07 10:01:55

These are some very helpful comments, may The Lord bless you for being so caring. I may not have stated this in the above post, but his health is suffering. It's only because he eats no fatty foods and very little meat that he's managed to hang on this long. It's not only the pacemaker he needs help with.

He had the pacemaker installed due to a combination of irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, coagulation in the blood, cirrhosis, thyroid problems. His cardiologist insisted that a pacer would help 'fix' him. I realize that most people only need them 'on demand' but his is constantly running due to the irregular heartbeat. The last few months have been increasingly hard on him and there has been no change in his diet or exercise routines. He can no longer sleep due to breathing problems. There are some reputable physicians in his neighborhood, in the church as well. We are constantly asking our church family to seek out doctors willing to help us at a discount. Our financial situation doesn't allow us much flexibility.

We are all in God's hands, and we should trust in that. "but he who stands firm to the end will be saved" Mark 13:13

St. Vincent's Hospital

by lenora - 2010-01-07 11:01:58

There's a St.Vincent's Hospital in Indianapolis. Call the social work department and ask if they can help you. Most Catholic hospitals have adult medical clinics for low-cost medical care. You could also ask if your church has a parish nurse that can check on him. Lenora

Cost of a checkup

by ElectricFrank - 2010-01-08 12:01:14

The ridiculous thing is that a pacemaker interrogation is essentially a zero cost procedure. The test doesn't add wear and tear to the test computer and probably uses a dimes worth of electricity. As far as checking battery status it doesn't take a high paid expert to read the report.

Of course if the battery is depleted then it's another matter on the cost of replacing the pacer.

frank

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