David's Story

Patient Credits Clark Memorial Health Cardiac Rehab Team for Getting Him Back Outdoors

Southern Indiana resident David Back is “back” to enjoying the great outdoors. During a family camping trip, David experienced chest pain and shortness of breath. As it turns out, he went into ventricular tachycardia – a cardiac arrest event which can cause sudden death when the heart cannot pump enough blood to the body.

David was hospitalized in the ICU where they found he had a very low ejection fraction of 15-20 percent.

Ejection fraction is a measurement of how much blood the left ventricle pumps out with each contraction. A normal ejection fraction is 50-70 percent.

Patients with low ejection fraction often must wear a life vest which will provide a life-saving shock if they experience a dangerous heart rhythm.

David had a life vest until this July when his ejection fraction went up to 50-55 percent thanks to the hard work he put in at Clark Memorial Health’s Cardiac Rehab Center. There, he strengthened his heart muscle through carefully monitored exercise and he is feeling better than he has in years. 

Making the decision to come to Cardiac Rehab at Clark Memorial Health was an easy one to make. The convenient location and experienced staff made it the best choice for David.

During his time at Cardiac Rehab, he continued to make strides due to the encouragement of two nurses, April Hulsey and Jane Voyles. 

“When I first met David, he could only exercise for four minutes on each piece of equipment before he was very short of breath and weak,” said Jane Voyles, cardiac rehab nurse. “With encouragement and time, he is now at 25 minutes on each piece of equipment.”

David loves to camp but could not camp again until he had completed cardiac rehab and his heart was stronger. On his last day, Jane and April gifted him a specially made sign because he finally gets to go camping again. 

“David has inspired us by his will and determination to get better, get the life vest off, and get his life back. He never gave up and stayed very positive,” said April Hulsey, cardiac rehab nurse. “We are thrilled to be part of his journey to return to something he loves.”

“They (April and Jane) have encouraged me to stay motivated in reaching my goal,” said David. “They have big hearts and are truly passionate about their jobs and patients. These two ladies have been my angels!”