Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Written by
Dr. Richard A. Martinez
@
3:00PM
From Dr. Richard A. Martinez, Family Physician in Redding,
California and member of Shasta Baptist
Church:
I saw Josh 4 days before his accident, after church at the grocery store. He
was buying food for a barbeque. He showed me his arm where he had gotten poison
oak and an infection was actually getting better on its own. Little did I know
he would soon be battling for his life with multi-system injuries. I heard
about his accident from my secretary, Bethany Becker, Pastor Johnson's daughter
and sister to Paul Johnson, his close friend and roommate. Being a physician
and reading the account in the news and the description of his injuries, I
assumed he would not survive 24 hours. His massive brain injury would most
certainly kill him and, at best, leave him a vegetable for the rest of his
life. Being a new Christian and recently being saved in August 2006, I know the
power of God and the faith we place in Him. My experience of 20 years
practicing medicine and caring for many patients who have had serious injuries
and subsequently died or have been left in a comatose state, however, made me
believe that there was no way Josh would survive or have any chance of
recovery.
On Wednesday, six days after his accident, my family and I were heading down
to Southern California for a vacation. I spoke
to Pastor Johnson about meeting him at U.C. Davis intensive care to visit Josh
and try to get a good medical opinion on how he was doing. Obviously, God has
performed a miracle, and Josh had survived almost a week after his accident.
After speaking with the nurse and reviewing Josh's progress with Pastor and
Mrs. Johnson, I felt cautiously optimistic. Josh had actually been off the
ventilator and talking the day before. Due to his pulmonary contusion (bruised
lung), he could not get enough oxygen on his own and had to be placed back on
the ventilator for mechanical respiration. I really did not feel this was a
step backwards, since subsequently talking to Pastor Gomez, it sounds like he
was taken off the ventilator prematurely. The fact that Josh spoke to his
mother while off the ventilator was beyond a miracle. The fact that he had
lived for 6 days after certain death and was not comatose was amazing. I
realize that God can do anything, but in my twenty years of medical practice I
HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS!
On our way back home Sunday I stopped by the hospital again to check on
Josh. I was able to visit with Pastor and Mrs. Gomez and some faithful church
members who had traveled from Chicago
to give their love and support to Josh and his family. The surgical resident
(Dr. in training) met us in Josh's room. He reviewed Josh's progress, and we
agreed that his condition was improved and remained cautiously optimistic. We
reviewed his chest x-rays and cat scans of his brain. He had suffered a stroke
on the right side of his brain (affecting the left side of his body) from
trauma to the right carotid artery, the main blood supply to this part of the
brain. He woke up for his mother after being heavily sedated for pain and
wiggled his left toes. UNBELIEVABLE AND AMAZING. Obviously, there is nothing in
science or medicine that can explain Josh's progress. Only with the thousands who
are praying for Josh, and the multiple miracles God is performing, can his
recovery be understood. I left the intensive care unit about 8:30 Sunday night
and told my wife and kids the amazing news. I also told them, as well as Pastor
Gomez and his wife, my concerns. Still on the ventilator, he is at risk for
serious infection from hospital-borne organisms to opportunistic pneumonia.
Reading today's update about his fever is a great worry. Josh is obviously
not out of the woods by any means. As long as he is on the ventilator and
requiring oxygen, there is a risk. If he continues to improve and can breathe
on his own soon and avoid a tracheostomy, (a hole made in his breathing tube so
no permanent damage will be made to his upper airway), that would be a great
blessing. Then, if that occurs, he would "only" have to deal with
left-sided paralysis from the stroke and perhaps blindness in the right eye.
His multiple rib, scapula, and vertebral (back) fractures will heal with time.
His recovery, if he makes it out of the intensive care unit alive, (I know my
medical experience makes me a realist, although I have great faith in God) will
be long and difficult. He will need weeks and most likely months in a
rehabilitation hospital to try to maximize his recovery. He may regain full use
of his left side or be left with just his toes wiggling or anything in between.
His recovery will be painful and very difficult. He may have memory problems or
difficulty speaking. His personality may be affected, and he may not emerge the
Josh we once knew. He will continue to need miracles along the way.
Being a family physician, I am very straight-forward with my patients. I
feel it is best to tell it like it is. I share my thoughts, feelings, concerns,
and doubts about my patient's medical condition as best I can with family
members and loved ones, so they may understand what we medical professionals
really think about the outcome of the patient. I obviously don't share
everything with the patient unless I feel they are ready to hear it. Pastor
Gomez encouraged me to "tell it like it is," and I have tried to do
that. That doesn't mean I don't believe in God and miracles, because Josh Gomez
is a living example of a miracle beyond belief already. Josh is receiving the
best medical care possible at U.C. Davis. If he gets discharged, I will try to
have him transferred to an excellent rehabilitation hospital here in Redding. My family and I
will also continue to pray for Josh and his recovery.
Professionally yours,
Dr. Richard A. Martinez, Family Physician
P.S. Update From Pastor Gomez
Josh's white count is up and he will definitely be scheduled for a tracheostomy by Friday.