Hospital, Sweet Hospital

Mary Greeley becomes a temporary home away from home for Tennessee couple.

In early August, Lawrence and Rita Stewart traveled from Tennessee to visit his brother, who lives on the family farm south of Ames. 

They took in the Iowa State Fair on Monday, August 11, visiting the Varied Industries Building and the butter cow before picking up a funnel cake for dessert later back at the farm. 

Rita felt fine at the fair, but that evening she began experiencing significant pain and passed out. Around midnight, Lawrence took her to Mary Greeley’s Emergency Department. 

The state fair ended on August 17. It would be weeks after that before Rita left Mary Greeley. 

Settling In

Rita was admitted to Mary Greeley’s Intensive Care Unit, suffering from severe gastrointestinal pain and other conditions. She was rapidly declining and tests were inconclusive about what was happening to her. 

“My dad was a farmer and farmers get things done by faith. You plant the fields and take care of the cows, and they give you something in return. But things happen, like drought, and you lose your crops. But you don’t let that defeat you. That is how I look at life and what my wife was going through,” said Lawrence, who remained optimistic despite the dire circumstances. 

A decision was made to do exploratory surgery. Dr. Gregory Sachs, a McFarland Clinic general surgeon, ultimately performed a total abdominal colectomy. A Wound Care Clinic specialist was brought in to help with Rita’s case. 

She made slow improvement over the following weeks, and Lawrence was with her every day. 

Home at the Hospital

About two weeks in, one of the nurses came into Rita’s ICU room and “happened to say something like ‘home, sweet home,’” said Lawrence. 

Inspired by the comment, he made a small sign that read, “Home Sweet Home, Tennessee or Bust” and taped it to a window. That sentiment was understandable given how long they’d spent on the unit. 

He then realized how many people had helped his wife. Doctors, nurses, patient care techs, transporters, environmental services workers, dietary staff—a range of Mary Greeley employees. Impressed, Lawrence started asking everyone to sign their name to a piece of paper. 

“I wanted to keep track of everyone who was helping us,” he said. “I sometimes wonder if even you guys realize how many people are affecting one single patient. You were all so good to us.” 

He wanted hospital leadership to know about their experience and brought the sheets of paper with nearly 100 signatures to Mary Greeley’s administrative office. 

“I got to know some really nice folks in the ICU and other locations,” he said. “The staff was wonderful. I meant to get the cafeteria folks on there but didn’t have the chance. I loved the food.” 

On September 23, Rita was transferred to a long-term acute-care facility in Des Moines and then to a facility in Nevada. In mid-November, the Stewarts finally headed back to Tennessee. Rita will be in a rehab facility until strong enough to return home. 

“We were very fortunate,” he added. “If this was going to happen to us, we couldn’t have picked a better location for this to have happened than at Mary Greeley.”