The Race of His Life

On the morning of the Pocono 500, the smell of gasoline, exhaust and burnt rubber filled the air on Pocono Raceway’s infield. However, it wasn’t strong enough to mask the aroma of freshly brewed coffee inside Patric Hettman’s camper. The East Stroudsburg man was just about to join his wife for a cup we he began experiencing heartburn. “I waited for it to pass, but it didn’t,” the 52-year-old says. “I began sweating and lied down, but couldn’t get comfortable.”

Hettman’s wife, a registered nurse, recognized the symptoms. “She noticed I had trouble using my hands and had me chew an aspirin,” Hettman says. When his hands and arms went numb, friends in a neighboring RV notified security personnel. They took Hettman to the infield hospital, operated by caregivers from Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network’s emergency room (ER).

An EKG showed he was having a heart attack. John McCarthy, D.O., initiated an MI Alert for Heart Attacks, our award-winning program that opens blocked heart vessels within 90 minutes, saving heart muscle. “They said MedEvac was taking off in two minutes to bring me to Lehigh Valley Hospital,” Hettman recalls. Because the hospital has been providing medical service at the Raceway since 2004, MedEvac was nearby.

During the 15-minute flight to Lehigh Valley Hospital—Cedar Crest, Hettman’s heart stopped four times, meaning his artery was severely blocked. Every time, flight nurse Judy Gagnon, R.N., shocked him back to life and assured him he would be OK. A former emergency medical technician, Hettman says, “I remember looking at the monitor and seeing my heart rate over 215. I knew it wasn’t good.”

After his heart stopped and was shocked yet again in the ER, Hettman was taken to the cardiac catheterization lab, where cardiologist Bryan Kluck, D.O., found the blocked artery. He opened it with a device that breaks up and sucks out plaque. Two stents were put in to help the artery stay open.

“I remember waking up in my room and watching the end of the race on TV,” Hettman says. Denny Hamlin took the checkered flag to win the Pocono 500, but Hettman says, “We were both winners that day.”

Three days later, Hettman was well enough to go home. “If it wasn’t for the speed and professional competence of everyone involved—and if I were at home instead of at the raceway—I probably wouldn’t be here today,” he says. “Thank God for Lehigh Valley Hospital.”