My Ride in an Ambulance (Part 2)

August 24^th2012 (about 8pm)

The game ended and my teammates one by one went by me…asking me how I was. I don’t remember if I answered them. Warren looked at me in the eyes and said “Mike, what’s the matter? What’s wrong with your arm”? I said “nothing is wrong with it”. He asked, “Then why are you holding it”? I replied, “it hurts”. Warren said “Mike do you want to go to the hospital”? And I replied “yes, right away”.Warren quickly looked for his wife Robin, and within 2 minutes I was in her car heading to Brampton hospital. I opened my wallet, got out my license and health card. The pain was getting unbearable. We pulled around to Emerg, and I said drop me here….I walked in to Triage…held my Health card in one hand and had the other hand on my chest. She pointed to a room with a bed, I laid down, and waited. Nobody followed me. The pain was bad…I couldn’t breathe. Where was my help?– Still no one came. I got up, I sat down, I sat up, I laid down, I didn’t know what to do. The pain…nothing I have ever experienced. Where was a Dr., where was anyone. I heard Robin outside…she came into see me, and saw I was alone. She went back out and said what is going on with Mike McMillan…they replied, there is no Mike McMillan here...and she said..a lot louder, really?...because there is a Mike McMillan in that room having a heart attack. She, in the meantime, convinced a paramedic to come in to see me. He said he had no hospital rights; there is nothing he could do…when persuasive Robin asked if he could at least come in and chat with him. He did…from here things started to get murky, some people stared to come in, and they transferred my to another room…I kept asking for something for the pain...it was so intense, still nothing. Things were happening now, there were at least 6 people in my room, everybody was talking, I am not sure what they were saying. They decided to transfer me. Trillium Health Centre in Mississauga are the professionals for heart attacks and the decision was made to send me. Nobody asked for my opinion. The pain got worse…I didn’t know how to deal with it. I have felt pain before, intense pain. Nothing could compare. The two paramedics arrived. The one guy leaned down and grabbed my hand. He said “My name is Damion” (yes…I know what you are thinking…..kind of an odd name considering my situation, I thought...oh,oh) – anyway, Damion grabbed my hand and pulled his face very close to mine. He said softly, but with confidence, “Mike, we are going for a ride…my partner is a great driver, and he will get you there as soon as possible, I will be in the back with you, it’s going to be bumpy….you are going to be ok Mike”. My feelings were split, I felt scared now, I realized what was going on, but this guy helped me come back to earth…and it was the first time in the last chaotic hour that I felt some hope.

Part 3....coming soon.