Bill's Story
Bill “The Professor” Temple, 73, leads a busy life. He is a writer, narrator, coach and mentor to clients in all levels of management and has a passion for helping people improve their lives by improving their work. Bill had a successful career in financial management culminating as President of a venture capital company and serving as the Senior Vice President of a bank holding company.
When Bill began experiencing abdominal pain and respiratory distress late one evening, he quickly knew something was not right. Having previously had abdominal surgery, both Bill and the physicians at a local hospital were concerned that he was having issues and a blockage due to his past procedure. The doctors conducted an examination to determine the cause of the blockage and initially felt that if they left it alone, the blockage would resolve itself. When that did not happen, Bill underwent surgery and had a feeding tube inserted to provide nutrients to supplement what little nutrition he could take by mouth. The surgery did not work as doctors had hoped, but because he seemed to be doing better, Bill was discharged with home health care.
After four days at home, Bill was still not getting better; in fact, he was feeling worse. On the fourth day, Bill was taken by ambulance to the closest trauma center, HonorHealth Deer Valley Medical Center. While in the ambulance, he coded and life-saving efforts were taken. Bill underwent immediate emergency surgery which identified the issue, an internal bleed and a build-up of scar tissue from previous surgeries. During surgery, Bill’s wife Carolyn was informed that he might not make it; his systems were shutting down, and while his stomach and other organs looked healthy, his prognosis was not good.
After nearly 60 days at the hospital, Bill had improved enough to be transferred to HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital for therapy that would help him regain strength. His goals were to walk again, hold his grandchildren and eat a meal with friends and family. Bill wanted to return to a physical condition as close to where he was before this event and did not want to be a burden to his wife or sons, Travis, Tory and Nick.
During Bill’s stay at HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital, he admits that he doubted his ability to achieve his goals, but says that the physical and occupational therapists that he worked with each day were the key to his success. “I appreciated their approach to my therapy sessions, pushing me to do what was asked and encouraging and inspiring me to do more, yet giving me the opportunity to rest when needed,” Bill said. “Their positive attitudes and reinforcement went a long way to get me through.” Bill states that the exercises his physical therapists had him do, including practicing walking, standing from a sitting position, upper body strengthening using weights and stepping up, down and sideways were really core to his ultimate success. He also credits his wife, who was a great support, saying, “I could not stay as focused without her.”
After two weeks of hard work, Bill was able to walk out of the hospital on his own, without a walker or any assistance. “There is no question in my mind that coming to HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital was the turning point in my recovery. Every aspect of my engagement with the staff, from administration, to doctors, to nursing, to my physical and occupational therapists to the support staff was outstanding. I would not be where I am were it not for the combined efforts of everyone involved!” Bill continued by stating, “In two weeks, HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital did more to get me ready for living a “normal” life than I could possibly have done in six months on my own.” Bill acknowledges that he still has work to do to continue building his stamina, improving his breathing and strengthening muscles that atrophied during his ordeal, but believes that his recovery has been nothing short of miraculous.