An American tourist who spent several weeks on life support in Cairns Hospital following a medical emergency has thanked clinicians for saving her life.
Leslie Kent spent months planning her and her husband Steve’s once-in-a-lifetime holiday Down Under, where they enjoyed adventures in Sydney, Melbourne, Uluru, and Cairns.
Before the couple arrived in Cairns, a sinus infection that Leslie had suddenly grew from being a travel annoyance to something very serious.
‘After spending the day in our hotel trying to recuperate, I instead collapsed on the hotel room floor, unable to move and breathing too rapidly,’ Mrs Kent said.
‘I remember none of this, but my husband ran down to the front desk to have them call the emergency responders.’
Mrs Kent said her medical emergency came as a shock, as they had only days earlier had been extremely active doing activities such as climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and riding camels at Uluru.
She said doctors at Cairns Hospital diagnosed her as suffering from severe sepsis and respiratory failure, resulting in admission to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) where she was treated for multi-organ failure and pneumonia.
‘The doctors were aggressive in seeking out the problems and solving them,’ she said.
‘I was intubated, put on medical ventilation, and placed into a medical coma.
‘At times they administered paralysis and dialysis, since not only my lungs were stricken but my kidneys were also failing.
‘They identified that my lungs suffered from both influenza A and staph infections.’
Mrs Kent was prescribed a comprehensive treatment plan including antibiotics and other medications to address the issues with her lungs, kidneys, and heart.
She remained in Cairns Hospital for about six weeks, including more than five weeks in ICU.
‘The doctors would not discharge me until I met two tests: I could walk independently with a cane; and my oxygen saturation did not fall below 90,’ she said.
‘I passed those tests on Saturday, 28 July and that evening the doctor discharged me.
‘I’ve never been so grateful as I was that day to be in a wheelchair, as my husband pushed me out of the hospital to our hotel.’
Mrs Kent, who is now at recovering at her home in Texas, credited hospital staff – particularly those in ICU - with her recovery.
‘The doctors were truly a team, dedicated to saving my life,’ she said.
‘The nurses offer such support, compassion and encouragement while providing medical care that I felt truly cared about, not just cared for medically.
‘The physios (physiotherapists) and speechies (speech pathologists) are also excellent, as they helped me clear my lungs and be able to eat food again.’
Cairns Hospital ICU clinical director Dr Cath Tacon said despite Mrs Kent’s early diagnosis and the prompt management of her illnesses, she remained in a critical condition in intensive care for a prolonged period.
‘Leslie’s survival is a testament to the hard work of the entire intensive are team – nursing, medical, and allied health,’ Dr Tacon said.
She said Mrs Kent’s case also illustrated the seriousness of influenza, particularly in vulnerable patients who are immune compromised.
‘Over the past two months, there has been an increasing number of patients admitted to our unit due to influenza,’ she said.
‘We strongly encourage all members of the community to get vaccinated against influenza to reduce their risk of developing severe disease that may require hospital or intensive care admission.’