During the summer, Dr. Calvin Phelps fell at his home and broke several ribs. He thought he was okay, but a few weeks later, he began to feel as if he might faint. He went to NRMC’s emergency room, and the ER physician listened to his lungs and did a chest X-ray. Dr. Phelps had a buildup of blood around his lungs related to the fall and his treatment with blood thinners.
The ER physician on duty called Dr. Warren Botnick with NRMC Pulmonology Associates to the ER to see Dr. Phelps. After examining Dr. Phelps, Dr. Botnick, a board-certified pulmonologist, tried to find his patient a bed at a hospital with a thoracic surgeon, but none of the hospitals he contacted had any availability due to the surge in COVID cases. So, Dr. Botnick consulted with a colleague in Shreveport, a thoracic surgeon, about Dr. Phelps’ needs. In agreement for the next steps, Dr. Botnick made arrangements for his new patient to remain at NRMC. He began treating him, removing over 2.5 gallons of blood from around his lungs over the course of several days while also giving him blood transfusions and medicines to prevent infections.
“When I went to the ER at NRMC, I knew right away that I was in good hands,” Dr. Phelps said. “I could not have asked for better care or treatment. They were wonderful, and I will never go to another ER or hospital again. When Dr. Botnick came into the ER and took over my case, he explained everything to me. The hospital was full, and so they kept me in the ER most of that first day, and then I had the treatments done in Same Day Surgery. Everyone was so nice and did such a good job. I am so very grateful to each of them.”
Dr. Phelps explained that Dr. Botnick has become not just his doctor but a friend. “Now, I look forward to going to his office for checkups. It is just a happy time when I see him. He correctly and appropriately assessed what had happened and made sure I came out of it. Even though the hospital was full with all the COVID, and he was the pulmonologist helping so many people, he treated me like I was the only one there. I don’t want to think about what could have been the outcome had I gone somewhere else. I will always go to NRMC from here on.”
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