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John&JaninCare

Published on February 20, 2021

Last updated 09:18 AM January 18, 2024

John and his daughter Janin smiling at each other.

If “adventure” were a gene, John Petrick surely passed it on to his daughter, Janin.

The father-daughter duo has always wanted to experience everything life has to offer. Together, the pair has survived an avalanche in the Alaskan wilderness, spent the night stranded on a cliff and even made a cross-country move from California to Georgia.

But one thing they never expected to have in common was a rare heart condition.

Instead of putting their shared adventures on pause, John and Janin teamed up with Wellstar in different ways to manage their heart conditions. With an entire team of heart specialists working seamlessly together, the pair found the expert, specialized cardiac care they needed—and it never skipped a beat.

Discovering the “Janin Genome”

For more than two decades, John managed the ups and downs of atrial fibrillation (AFib) and ventricular tachycardia (VT) with specialists in California. But after moving cross-country to Georgia, he had to start over from scratch.

With such complex heart conditions and a more recent diagnosis of congestive heart failure, John knew he couldn’t trust his care to just anyone. At Wellstar, he soon found an expansive, multidisciplinary team—including cardiologists, electrophysiologists and surgeons.

Similarly, Wellstar would also end up helping John’s daughter, Janin, following her treatment for a severe heart episode—one that was strikingly similar to her father’s. After several spells of faintness, Janin was equipped with a Holter monitor, a wearable device that records heart rhythms.

“After just 18 hours, I got a call from my doctor’s office. My electrophysiologist was gravely concerned about the readings,” Janin recalled. “Apparently, the night before, my heart had completely stopped for five seconds. And, at that very moment, I was in a dangerous arrhythmia.”

Just like her father, Janin was diagnosed with VT and an atrioventricular block, which occurs when the electrical signals traveling from the upper chambers of the heart to the lowers chambers is blocked.

She soon got a defibrillator implanted to help keep her heart in regular rhythm. As Janin started to get back on track after the surgery, her doctor felt more answers could be uncovered. At her electrophysiologist’s suggestion, she participated in genetic testing.

At Wellstar, John underwent the same genetic testing to see if any clues about their heart conditions could be uncovered in their DNA. With just a simple blood draw, the Wellstar genetics team can get an inside look at the hereditary markers for certain genetic conditions.

After sharing so many adventures and similar personality traits, it was no surprise when the results revealed the same exact abnormality in both of their genes.

However, the genetic discovery—playfully nicknamed the “Janin Genome” by John and his daughter—was a first for the heart specialists. While genetic tests for other heart conditions like cardiac disease may be more commonplace, testing for arrhythmic heart disorders like VT is rare.

“When we got the results, they told us, ‘We've never seen this before—such an identical test result, regarding the same gene and the same anomaly affecting heart rhythm,’” John said. “The doctors concluded there may be a genetic connection to our heart problems, and it was worth paying attention to and exploring further.”

The Petricks are now in the process of getting the genetic testing done for the whole family, so all of their loved ones can take charge of their own wellness.

“After we had our testing, it was a starting point for our family,” Janin said, explaining how the genetic testing had a positive ripple effect for her family members. “We encouraged every single one of our blood relatives to go through genetic testing.”

When Janin and I got the results, the doctors told us, ‘We've never seen this before – such an identical test result, regarding the same gene and the same anomaly affecting heart rhythm.

- John Petrick

Wellstar Heart Care Patient

Support from the heart

After managing such complex conditions like AFib and VT for decades, John it almost became second nature for him to deal with stress and anxiety.

“Living with these types of heart conditions is tough. You're either feeling great or you’re being basically knocked silly by a defibrillator shocking you,” John explained. “I usually have some indication that I may be shocked and brace myself, but I still live with that anxiety.”

Now, navigating congestive heart failure and his daughter’s VT diagnosis, John felt like he needed to speak to someone who understood his unique situation. He was surprised to learn Wellstar has a ready resource just for cardiovascular patients.

Dr. Shawn Coyne, a Wellstar clinical health psychologist who specializes in cardiovascular patients, was available to help him work through challenges.

“There actually aren’t a lot of people doing what I do,” Dr. Coyne said about her psychological expertise. “At Wellstar, we wanted to build out a program just for our cardiovascular patients because behavioral health and cardiac health are really closely connected. In fact, cardiac patients are three times as likely to be depressed as the general population.”

John could finally breathe a sigh of relief. With Dr. Coyne’s expertise in cardiac psychology, he didn’t have to explain his condition in depth or medical terminology. She could immediately understand his concerns on a deeper level and help him cope.

Dr. Coyne shared her approach to helping cardiovascular patients, like John, stay positive throughout the process.

“I start with education. I want my patients to understand how depression can affect our cognition and memory,” she said. “The second step is teaching them how to fight depression. We don’t have to be beaten down by it. We can actually fight back with certain skills and changing how we think and what we do.”

The expert care and behavioral health resources at Wellstar helped John feel better physically and mentally.

“Learning to deal with anxiety and cope with stress is a fundamental part of living with a serious heart condition,” John said. “I'm glad to know that there are resources out there that can help people with the psychological effects of their condition.”

Once Janin was diagnosed with VT, she made sure to see Dr. Coyne at Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center too, since she knew just how instrumental the cardiac psychologist has been to her father’s care.

“Dr. Coyne is a phenomenal resource for anyone who has any type of heart condition,” Janin said, raving about her experience with the psychologist. “She understands it, but more importantly, she helps you understand it.”

“I have seen Dr. Coyne a few times, and I always walk away feeling better about my own treatment, my own diagnosis and my own future,” she continued.

From specialized heart experts to groundbreaking genetic testing, John and Janin found world-class care for their hearts, bodies and minds right here in Georgia. Along the way, the pair has not only learned to be there for each other, but also advocate for their own health.

“Your health is a cooperative process,” John said. “You have to be involved. You have to be your own advocate.”

The father-daughter duo is now ready to take on their latest adventure: staying heart healthy, together. And, moving forward, they are joined by their Wellstar team every step of the way.

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Shawn Marie Coyne PeopleCare Heart Care
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Back to school after receiving highly coordinated stroke care at Wellstar, Assistant Principal De'sa Fuller, enters her office to start a new school year.

PeopleCare

De'saCare

De'sa Fuller, an assistant principal in West Georgia, greeted teachers in the hallway like every other morning. But her day turned upside down when she lost her balance and couldn’t rise from the floor. Thanks to the immediate actions of those around her—from the teacher who called 911 to emergency medical services and her Wellstar team—De’sa recovered and is back to school. Her story is a powerful testament to how recognizing symptoms of a stroke, calling for help right away and having highly coordinated care can lead to remarkable outcomes.

Getting help when things go wrong

At 34, De'sa Fuller was living a vibrant life. She was a 6th grade assistant principal at Gardner Middle School in LaGrange. She loved her job, enjoyed traveling and was saving up to buy her first home. April 15 started out like any other day. Smoothie in hand, she greeted teachers in the hallway as she made her way to her office.

“I felt a little off,” De'sa recalled. “I just thought I was going too fast—I didn’t put much thought into it.” Then she fell. A concerned teacher asked if she was okay. De'sa, thinking she had simply tripped, said “Yes.” Her vision blurred as she tried to get up and she fell again. “I said, ‘I am not okay.’”

What began as a typical morning turned into a race against time. One teacher's quick thinking to call 911 activated a rapid chain of events that would save De’sa from permanent disability.

The critical first minutes

“The ambulance got there quickly. It was like they were around the corner,” De'sa remembered. 

“We got a call that EMS was bringing in a female who had been found on the floor at work, experiencing right-sided weakness,” explained Ginger Truitt, stroke coordinator at Wellstar West Georgia Medical Center, a Primary Stroke Center. The EMS professionals also reported confusion, headache and vomiting. “Those symptoms suggest stroke. We activated quickly.”

As a result, Dr. Reginald “Ashley” Orr, an emergency medicine physician, was ready for her arrival. 

“I was worried about an acute stroke by their description of her symptoms,” he remembered. “I evaluated her on the stretcher when she came through the door.”

A Code FAST was called with the goal of speeding up the time to start treatment to improve De’sa’s chances for better outcomes. They skipped the emergency department and took her for a CT scan. Then she was seen by the onsite neurologist, and the team quickly administered tenectoplase—or TNK—a clot-busting drug.

“Her symptoms were markedly improved,” Dr. Orr noted. “She was more awake.”

However, the CT angiogram showed an MCA M1 occlusion—a blockage in a major blood vessel in the brain. While she had shown some improvement, it wasn’t enough. De'sa needed a thrombectomy, a procedure to remove the clot and restore vital blood flow to the brain.

 

A seamless transfer

De’sa needed an immediate transfer to a thrombectomy center, and there are only a few in the state of Georgia. After a quick virtual consult with Dr. Ovais Inamullah, a telestroke neurologist at Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center—a Comprehensive Stroke Center—she was accepted for transfer. The Marietta-based Neuro Care program performs one of the highest volumes of thrombectomy and aneurysm treatments in the country.

Because time is of the essence with successful stroke treatment, transport by air is preferred. However, weather conditions threatened the flight’s safety. The ground EMS crew dutifully stood by in case they needed to drive De’sa. 

Mercifully, the clouds lifted after a few tense moments and she began her trip to Wellstar Kennestone via helicopter.

“When we have this type of emergency, our goal is to get patients out the door for a thrombectomy in 90 minutes,” Ginger said. “In De’sa’s case, we did it in 102 minutes, which was still impressive because there was cloud cover and we weren’t sure at first if she would be able to fly.”

Upon arrival, De'sa was taken directly to the angio suite where Dr. Ahmad Khaldi, a Wellstar neurosurgeon, and his team were waiting. “Every minute counts,” he emphasized.

A thrombectomy is a procedure that treats a stroke without open brain surgery. A tiny catheter is threaded through a blood vessel in the arm or leg to the brain to remove a clot, restoring blood flow to help prevent permanent disability or even death.

“We finished surgery by 11:25 AM,” Dr. Khaldi said—just 20 minutes after the procedure began.

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Robert, a new grandfather, poses proudly with his daughter and her infant son. With Wellstar helping him manage his HCM, he can keep making memories with his growing family.

PeopleCare

RobertCare

Robert Frederick was living a typical life, going to work and spending time with his mother, siblings and children. But then it became hard to breathe when walking short distances or climbing stairs. He got dizzy. Perhaps most disturbingly, he passed out several times—once at a Braves baseball game he attended with his siblings.

"I didn't know what was going on!" Robert recalled.

Difficulty controlling AFib with medication

After passing out the first time, he went to urgent care and was then taken to the hospital by ambulance. He learned his symptoms were caused by atrial fibrillation (AFib), an irregular heartbeat.

Robert began to see Dr. David Caras, a Wellstar general cardiologist, and learned AFib is related to high blood pressure. Successfully managing high blood pressure often helps people keep AFib under control. Despite their efforts, AFib sent Robert to the emergency room two more times.

Suspicion of HCM

Dr. Caras reviewed Robert’s hospital records and found he had increased wall thickness of the left ventricle and a gradient—a pressure difference between the left ventricle and the aorta when the heart pumps. These findings were consistent with a condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Characterized by abnormal thickening of the heart muscle, this disease makes it difficult for the heart to pump blood effectively.

Dr. Caras referred Robert to Dr. Melissa Burroughs, an HCM specialist at Wellstar. As a Center of Excellence designated by the Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association, Wellstar is one of the leading providers of comprehensive HCM care in Metro Atlanta.

"We have physicians in the group—designated HCM specialists—that are the point person of the patient’s care," Dr. Burroughs explained. “This includes close communication and collaboration with electrophysiologists, surgeons, advanced heart failure specialists, social workers and behavioral health professionals.”

A rare finding leads to Mayo Clinic Care Network collaboration

Robert said, “Dr. Burroughs wanted to do genetic testing to verify that I had HCM."

But genetic testing revealed a rare genetic variant—one not known to be associated with HCM. Dr. Burroughs called it a “diagnostic conundrum.” The genetic variant found was typically associated with a different cardiac disease that Robert did not have. However, he did have clear signs of HCM.

To investigate further, Dr. Burroughs collaborated with other HCM experts through the Mayo Clinic Care Network, of which Wellstar is a member. Mayo Clinic, which is also an HCM Center of Excellence, provided access to its unpublished database, finding Robert’s rare mutation was present in two other family groups with HCM.

“It’s very important that we add to the science—that we include our patients in the registry to enhance what is already known about HCM,” Dr. Burroughs said.

Robert added, “Dr. Burroughs is very persistent. She wanted to know, ‘Why are you having these problems? What’s the root cause?’ She went above and beyond to find that out.”

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Doctor listening to patient's heart with stethoscope

Newsroom

Top Marks for Heart Care at Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center

Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center has received several major commendations highlighting the high level of heart care continuously provided to patients—putting Wellstar’s cardiothoracic surgery program among the top in the nation. The Marietta-based heart care program received:

  • The coveted three-star rating in the following key areas from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS): isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG, or open-heart surgery), aortic valve replacement (AVR), AVR + CABG, and multiprocedural cardiothoracic surgeries. This is the highest category of quality, placing Wellstar Kennestone among the best programs for heart surgery in the U.S. and Canada. 
  • The prestigious Comprehensive Cardiac Care Certification—the highest distinction awarded by The Joint Commission and the American Heart Association. Wellstar Kennestone was the first in Georgia to receive this certification.

These recognitions demonstrate Wellstar’s commitment to keeping advanced heart care close to home.

“These accomplishments speak volumes about the skill, precision and teamwork of our cardiothoracic team,” said Dr. Richard Myung, medical director of cardiothoracic surgery at Wellstar Kennestone. “We’re proud to deliver exceptional outcomes for patients from across the Southeast who have some of the most complex heart conditions.”

Three-star STS rating

STS ratings reflect not only surgical excellence, but also the quality of care patients receive in the critical 30-day period following surgery. 

“This extraordinary recognition reflects the world-class quality of care offered by Wellstar,” said Lorrie Liang, president of Wellstar Kennestone and Wellstar Windy Hill. “To achieve this gold standard, a health system must demonstrate both clinical excellence and rigorous standards for follow-up care. At Wellstar, we provide all of this, along with a warm, people-centered experience. It’s what we call ‘PeopleCare.’”

These results highlight the importance of a multidisciplinary approach—one that includes surgeons, anesthesiologists, perfusionists, nurses, cardiologists, respiratory therapists, rehabilitation specialists, critical care specialists, hospitalists, advanced practice providers and many others.

“This achievement is a testament to the entire care continuum,” said Steve Cermak, executive director of cardiovascular service line and hospital operations at Wellstar Kennestone. “From the operating room to recovery and rehabilitation, every team member plays a vital role in delivering outstanding outcomes.”

Among the three-star rankings is CABG. This procedure is commonly performed to treat people having a heart attack or other conditions including coronary heart disease with chest pain, multiple blocked coronary arteries or serious heart failure. The procedure is performed by cardiovascular surgeons at Wellstar Kennestone—Dr. Theresa Luu, Dr. James Burke and Dr. Richard Myung—who work as part of a large multidisciplinary team to give every patient the highest quality care at every step of the process, from diagnosis through surgery and recovery.

“This amazing recognition is about the great lengths we go to care for our patients, and why people travel from across the region to receive their care at Wellstar Kennestone,” added Director of Wellstar Cardiothoracic Surgery Services and the Structural Heart and Valve Program Karrie Davis. “We care for every patient like they’re a family member or close friend. That’s why we hold ourselves to the highest standards.”

Wellstar Center for Cardiovascular Care offers patients care close to home across Georgia communities at more than 25 cardiovascular locations, with more than 110 cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons standing ready to provide heart care for both routine and complex heart conditions. Wellstar also has one of the largest cardiovascular rehabilitation programs in Georgia, which helps patients improve their long-term outcomes.

Certification by The Joint Commission

The Joint Commission has also awarded Wellstar Kennestone with a Gold Seal of Approval in conjunction with the American Heart Association’s Heart-Check mark and certification as a Comprehensive Cardiac Center for the third consecutive time.

For the certification, Wellstar Kennestone underwent a rigorous, unannounced onsite review. During the visit, a team of Joint Commission reviewers evaluated compliance with related certification standards including evaluating the care of the cardiac patient at every touch point in the cardiac care continuum with ongoing process improvement and health promotion for patients, as well as the community. Joint Commission standards are developed in consultation with healthcare experts and providers, measurement experts and patients. The reviewers also conducted onsite observations and interviews. 

The hospital first received the two-year certification in 2019. This recertification makes the third cycle—or sixth year—it has remained in place. Wellstar Kennestone was the first hospital in Georgia and remains the only one in the state to hold the comprehensive certification.

From prevention to post-cardiac event recovery, our well-connected and collaborative heart care team is dedicated to empowering you to regain your strength and independence. We offer top-quality cardiovascular care including diagnostics, treatment, psychological support and ongoing monitoring all focused on your well-being. Learn more about award-winning heart care at Wellstar.

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