What began as back pain turned out to be a life-threatening heart attack for 67-year-old Thomas Wicker. Quick action and coordinated emergency care from Pottstown Hospital Emergency Department helped save his life.
A Pain He Couldn't Ignore
Last winter, Thomas Wicker thought he was dealing with lingering back pain – until emergency medicine doctors at Pottstown Hospital told him he was having a heart attack.
At 67 years old, he considered himself to be in good health.
The Pottstown resident, Army veteran, and former maintenance professional stayed active after retirement, even taking on a part-time job at West Chester BMW.
So when he felt spasms in his upper back one Friday night in November, he didn’t think much of it.
“It hurt to breathe, but I thought the pain was from previous car accidents,” Thomas recalled. “I kept thinking it would go away.”
But the pain worsened throughout the weekend, making even simple movements difficult. By Monday morning, Thomas could barely walk from his house to the car parked outside.
By then, his family knew something was seriously wrong.
A Life-Saving Response
Around 6:30 a.m., Thomas was rushed by ambulance to Pottstown Hospital’s Emergency Department.
“I remember the person on the ambulance asking me, ‘Do you pray? Do you want me to pray with you?’ He prayed with me all the way down Route 422 and helped me stay calm,” Thomas said.
Once at the hospital, emergency care teams moved quickly, running tests and explaining each step as they worked.
“‘You’re having a heart attack,’” Thomas remembers the doctor telling him. “‘But you’re going to be fine.’”
Within moments, the team stabilized him using a minimally invasive procedure involving a balloon catheter inserted through his arm to relieve pressure and restore blood flow to his heart.
“Nothing but angels all the way around,” Thomas said. “Everybody stepped right in to help and didn’t think twice about it.”
Thomas Returns to Regular Life
Today, Thomas is focused on recovery and grateful for the team that saved his life. He follows a care plan with his cardiologist, Rajeev Marreddy, DO, takes his medication daily, and completes cardio exercises twice each week.
Most importantly, Thomas is back to the moments he treasures most – being “Poppy” to his 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild, as well as traveling to South Carolina, where he spent much of his childhood before moving to Pennsylvania as a teenager.
“Now, I feel great,” he said. “Dr. Marreddy got me back on my feet. I’ve had an outstanding recovery because of the doctors and nurses at Pottstown Hospital. Every time I’m here, they show me how much they care.”
