When all that matters is...

...more time together.

Selma and Harold Hurwitz were at a restaurant, finishing up dinner with friends when something seemed suddenly, terribly wrong with Harold.

It was a heart attack — a massive one, as Selma learned minutes later from the EMT who sped them both to Shady Grove Adventist Hospital.

“We were so fortunate we were close to Shady Grove,” Selma said. They took Harold into the Emergency Department and right into surgery.

It was serious. The surgeons had to shock him twice, they told her, but Harold survived the operation. They would have to wait a few days to know whether he’d make it.

“I was so frightened all the time I was there. But it’s a wonderful, wonderful hospital,” Selma says. “I was extremely impressed, not only with the Intensive Care Unit but also with the care that followed. They have a very good nursing staff .”

Shady Grove is one of the few hospitals in the county designated as an accredited Chest Pain Center, and is one of the first in the area with a comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation program. Based on the hospital’s exceptional outcomes for cardiac patients, we have been approved for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), an early life-saving medical procedure.

What’s more, our capacity for surgeries of all kinds — including cardiac surgeries as complicated and challenging as Harold’s — has just grown with the opening of our new 100,000 sq.ft. surgical unit, made possible by donations from our supporters.

Just weeks after his attack, Harold is returning to his youthful self and about to begin cardiac rehabilitation. Married 58 years, he and Selma are getting back to normal — Selma to her art and Harold to his long-time interests in biblical archeology and photography. Says Selma, “The most important thing is that he’s here.”

How You Can Help

Interested in helping Emergency Department patients like Harold in our Chest Pain Center? Contact the Shady Grove Adventist Hospital Foundation at (240) 826-6570 to learn more about our giving opportunities and how your gracious contribution can be best directed to help.

We Want to Hear From You

Do you have a story that you would like to share with us? Tell us about your experience at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital to inspire others and help us recognize the efforts of those who made a difference in your life!