After working in construction for more than 20 years, Brett Faucett knows all about the right building blocks. Piece by piece, a building comes together, but if one brick falls out of line, the whole system can crumble.
That’s why Brett knew something was wrong when the numbness started in his left arm. It came and went several times before he ended up behind the wheel of his car.
Sitting at an intersection, Brett was at a crossroads. He could turn right, attend his out-of-town business meeting, and ignore the sinking feeling inside. Or he could turn left and drive straight to the Emergency Department at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital.
“It’s really hard when you plan on going to work and you know people are counting on you. It’s hard to make that left turn and listen to your body.”
Brett took a deep breath and turned the wheel toward the hospital, forever changing the course of his life.
BrettCare
Published on February 20, 2020
Last updated 03:48 PM October 31, 2022
From diagnosis to treatment, Brett received cutting-edge cardiac care that saved his life, all from one health system, mere miles from his home.
All heart attacks can be deadly, but a widowmaker heart attack is particularly dangerous. In Brett’s case, we had to act quickly to restore blood flow and prevent any damage to his heart.
- Dr. Salvatore Mannino
Wellstar Cardiologist
Listen to Brett's Story
In the nick of time
Though he didn’t know it, Brett was just minutes away from death when he arrived at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital. After a flurry of tests, Dr. Salvatore Mannino discovered Brett was having a “widowmaker” heart attack with a 99.9% blockage.
“All heart attacks can be deadly, but a widowmaker heart attack is particularly dangerous,” explained Dr. Mannino. A widowmaker heart attack occurs when the left anterior descending (LAD) artery, which supplies blood to the front part of the heart, is blocked. “In Brett’s case, we had to act quickly to restore blood flow and prevent any damage to his heart.”
“When you’re 39 years old, you would never think, 'Man, I'm going to be dealing with a heart attack,'” Brett said. “When you're in a situation like that, your world is flipped upside down.”
From the technicians to the physicians, the Wellstar Medical Staff was there to offer support and reassurance every step of the way.
“They did an amazing job of just calming me down, letting me know what was going on, letting me know what my future looked like,” Brett remembered.
For this father of two, his treatment at Wellstar made all the difference. Less than 24 hours later, Brett was released from the hospital with no heart damage, and back home with his wife and kids.
“My family has a dad and a husband because of Wellstar,” Brett stressed. “As much as it’s a shock to the person that has the heart attack, it’s an even bigger shock for the family because they’re the ones that could have been left behind.”
Following his release, Brett went to Wellstar Cobb Hospital for cardiac rehabilitation, a medically supervised education, lifestyle and exercise program for patients with cardiac-related illnesses like heart attacks.
After completing the program, Brett was able to move forward without missing a beat.
Listening to your body
A few years later, Brett sat on an airplane heading to Atlanta from a business trip. As the tires lifted from the ground, he broke out in a cold sweat and felt a nagging tightness in his chest.
“It felt like I maybe had bronchitis, just a little tightness. It was a completely different feeling than my first heart issue,” Brett recounted.
Even though he was more than 30,000 feet in the air, Brett knew he had to do something. After notifying the flight attendant of the situation, an EMS team was brought on the tarmac at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport. As soon as the plane touched down, Brett was rushed through downtown to Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center.
“When you have a second heart attack, you just don’t even know what to do,” Brett said, describing the intensity of the situation. “You don’t know how to even process that.”
After undergoing tests in the cardiac catheterization (cath) lab, Dr. Paul Douglass discovered a 40% blockage in a vessel that ran across the front of Brett’s heart. The cardiologist cleared the blockage immediately.
“It turns out Mr. Faucett had a new lesion that caused his second heart attack. Luckily, this time his artery didn’t require a stent.” Dr. Douglass recalled, noting that a stent helps prop the artery open, decreasing its chance of narrowing again. “However, to prevent a heart attack in the future, he was placed on a strict diet and aerobic exercise plan.”
After two days in the ICU, Brett was feeling like himself again.
During it all, Brett fondly remembers how Dr. Douglass treated him throughout the process. “He took a lot of time with me explaining everything. He made me feel at ease and helped me understand what was going on.”
To this day, Brett still regularly sees Dr. Douglass for any of his cardiovascular needs.
“Dr. Douglass walks the walk. Literally.” He laughed, remembering how he once called the cardiologist and caught him on the treadmill.
But Dr. Douglass wasn’t the only one helping Brett during his recovery.
“Caring for patients is a team effort with both the physician and the family,” Dr. Douglass said about Brett’s health journey. “His wife and children were instrumental in his recovery. They helped cheer him on through cardiac rehabilitation so he could achieve his health goals.”
Expert heart care
From diagnosis to treatment, Brett received cutting-edge cardiac care that saved his life, all from one health system, mere miles from his home. Brett and his entire family continue their wellness journey with Wellstar, whether that’s making sure he stays healthy or scheduling routine check-ups for his two kids at Acworth Health Park.
“Wellstar covers all my family's health needs,” Brett said about the comprehensive care he and his family have received. “The way Wellstar has taken care of us is world-class. We feel like we’re the only patients they have.”
One of the biggest lessons Brett has learned is to listen to his body as he gets older. “When you’re younger you feel like you’re bulletproof, and nothing could ever happen to you. One thing I would advise is making sure that all men of all ages have some kind of health screening at least once a year.”
Brett knows his cardiac episodes are just a couple of chapters in his health story. To keep making progress, he must continue to choose to live a healthy lifestyle and be an active participant in his wellness. But with Wellstar, he doesn’t have to do it alone.
“Everyone has a health story that gets written,” Brett said. “And there is no other place that I would want my story written than at Wellstar.”
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There aren’t many people out there who can say they survived cardiac arrest at 30. Kevin Miskewicz can.
According to the American Heart Association, more than 90% of people who experience an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest die. Those who survive often have permanent neurological disabilities. But Kevin’s story has an incredibly fortunate ending, thanks to the highly coordinated work of his medical experts at Wellstar.
Recovering from cardiac arrest is something Kevin will never forget. It lives forever as a piece of his health history—one that includes a dedicated healthcare team—and his wife, who was the first to save his life.
CPR to the rescue
Kevin woke up on Labor Day 2017 at 5:30 AM to take the dog out. Pausing to adjust the thermostat as he came in, he fell, knocking over a lamp.
He was in cardiac arrest.
With no symptoms and no known pre-existing condition, this was unexpected, but that didn’t stop his wife, Andrea, from jumping into action.
“If it weren’t for me knocking over a lamp when I passed out,” said Kevin, “she would have never woken up and saved my life.”
In addition to calling 911 and unlocking the door for the paramedics, Andrea performed CPR for 10 minutes.
“Kevin’s wife doing good CPR was critical,” said Dr. Arthur Reitman, the interventional cardiologist who was a vital part of Kevin’s treatment team at Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center. “More than five minutes of poor blood flow to the brain can result in permanent irreparable injury from which a patient is unable to recover.”
Coordinating multidisciplinary care to save a life
When paramedics arrived at Kevin’s home, he had no pulse and was not breathing. As the paramedics performed their lifesaving work, he technically died two times.
The ambulance took him to Wellstar North Fulton Medical Center, where he was initially assessed and treated by Dr. David Jacoboff. The interventional cardiologist implanted an intra-aortic balloon pump to stabilize him. Then, he transferred Kevin to Wellstar Kennestone for highly specialized heart care.
When Kevin arrived at Wellstar Kennestone by helicopter, his heart function wasn’t strong enough to support his body. Dr. Reitman and a team of doctors including a cardiologist, a pulmonologist and critical care doctors worked in tandem to put Kevin on an advanced life support system called veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Better known as VA-ECMO, it took the heart “offline” so it could heal. The technology removed unoxygenated blood from his body, oxygenated it and pumped it back in for the next three days.
“Very few places in the state—only four or five hospitals—have the technology and specialized training to put a patient on ECMO,” Dr. Reitman explained.
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EricCare
Eric Janeau, a former All-American offensive tackle who once played football at Kansas State University and Western Illinois University and trained with the Detroit Lions, faced a host of serious health conditions—a rare form of bile duct cancer, obesity, heart failure, kidney disease and diabetes. With the support of his tight-knit network of doctors and the Wellstar Center for Best Health, Eric is overcoming these obstacles and inspiring others through his remarkable weight loss journey.
Life change kickoff: A rare cancer diagnosis
In 2021, Eric was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive bile duct cancer.
“I was in disbelief,” Eric remembered. “I didn’t eat all weekend.”
The only cure was surgery, but at 11 centimeters, the tumor was too large to be removed. Under the care of Medical Oncologist Dr. Carmen Klass, Eric began chemotherapy. At the time, he didn’t realize just how dismal his chances were for survival. At stage 4, the survival rate for this cancer type is 1%, with only four to six months to live if treatment isn’t successful.
Eric began chemotherapy accompanied by additional hydration to help with his heart failure and steroid shots that caused him to gain weight during treatment. After 12 rounds and six cycles of chemo, his body responded excellently—the mass shrunk by 40%. Surgical Oncologist Dr. Sahir Shroff re-evaluated him and cleared him for surgery to remove the tumor in early 2022.
Today, Eric is cancer free.
One team, one goal: Eric’s health comeback
Eric’s journey didn’t end with cancer treatment. He also faced severe obesity, putting him at risk for life-threatening conditions like heart disease and stroke. Dr. Klass was concerned and took the time to address Eric’s other health concerns.
“Dr. Klass and Dr. Shroff keep up with my health and they keep each other informed of what’s going on,” Eric said. “They're totally invested in my well-being.”
After chemotherapy and surgery to remove the tumor, Dr. Klass referred Eric to Dr. Mitzi Rubin at Wellstar Center for Best Health. It was time to lose weight and get his diabetes and high blood pressure in check.
Highlights
Wellstar Cobb Medical Center Celebrates Opening of Obstetric Emergency Department
The Obstetric Emergency Department provides expert evaluation and treatment for patients who are 20 weeks pregnant through six weeks postpartum. Patients have direct access to board-certified obstetric providers, supported by a coordinated team of maternal-fetal medicine specialists, anesthesiologists, neonatologists, nurses and midwives. Services include rapid care for urgent pregnancy concerns, management of pregnancy-related conditions such as hypertension or gestational diabetes, and monitoring for postpartum complications. Families also receive compassionate guidance and resources, including support during high-risk pregnancies or loss. “Pregnancy can bring moments of uncertainty and having immediate access to obstetric experts can make all the difference,” said Dr. Jessica Williams, OB/GYN medical director at Wellstar Cobb. “The Obstetric Emergency Department allows us to respond quickly, provide clarity and help families feel supported from the moment they walk through the door.” Georgia continues to experience one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the nation, with disparities particularly affecting Black women. Many of these outcomes are preventable with timely access to specialized care. The Obstetric Emergency Department at Wellstar Cobb helps address these challenges by advancing Wellstar’s commitment to reducing maternal health disparities and improving perinatal outcomes. The department ensures patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time and in a safe and supportive environment. This expansion of maternal care services enhances Wellstar Cobb’s comprehensive Women’s Center and complements its full-service Labor & Delivery program and Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, reinforcing Wellstar’s mission to deliver world-class healthcare to every patient and family we serve.