In the early hours of the 9th, my father suddenly developed a heart attack. He had persistent chest tightness and chest pain, but he did not call for help right away. He endured it on his own until around 5 a.m., when he finally woke us up.
It was the first time I had ever faced something like that, and I barely understood what was happening. I drove him straight to the emergency department at the nearest hospital, Huizhou Third People’s Hospital. The ER doctor ordered an ECG, and as soon as the result came out, we were told he needed surgery immediately and would need a cardiac stent.
Before he was taken into the operating room, the doctor had me sign several documents and explained the risks that could arise during and after the procedure.
He was wheeled into surgery before 6 a.m. The operation was finished around 7, and afterward he was admitted directly to the CCU, where he stayed for three days before being transferred to a general ward.
On his first day in the regular ward, he still had some chest tightness, though not pain. He already had several underlying conditions, including diabetes and high blood pressure, and his uric acid and a number of other indicators were well above the normal range. The doctors used medication to bring those values back under control.
Over the next few days, the attending physician reviewed his post-op ECG results and then asked to speak with me. The outlook, at least for now, was not very optimistic. A relatively large area of heart muscle had been damaged, and that would likely affect his quality of life going forward. I was asked to sign another critical condition notice.
The doctor was very clear that poor management after surgery could easily trigger all kinds of complications. The way it was explained sounded serious, and it was.
My father fits the classic profile of someone with all three major metabolic risk factors. He has had diabetes for more than twenty years and has been taking medication for it long term. He also smoked and drank regularly, and he has always preferred rich, greasy food, never taking his health very seriously. We had urged him many times to quit smoking and drinking and to watch what he ate, to keep things light and simple, but he never listened. After going through this, maybe he finally will.
On the morning of the 15th, he completed a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation assessment. The data still were not encouraging. The doctor repeatedly stressed that smoking and alcohol had to stop completely, that he needed regular follow-up visits, and that any exercise should increase gradually from light to stronger activity.
His discharge diagnosis listed:
- Acute extensive anterior wall myocardial infarction
- Coronary atherosclerotic heart disease
- Killip class I
- Hypertension, grade 2 (very high risk)
- Type 2 diabetes mellitus
- Hyperlipidemia
- Hyperuricemia
Illness can strike like a landslide, but recovery comes slowly, like unwinding silk. Being safe and healthy is a blessing.
We had resident medical insurance, and most categories were reimbursed at 75%. The total hospital bill at discharge came to 32,000 yuan, and our out-of-pocket cost was 14,000 yuan. On top of that, my father had also bought an insurance policy online earlier this year. We asked about filing a claim, but the required paperwork is extensive. We will have to wait until the hospital records are fully archived before printing and uploading everything. How much of it can actually be reimbursed—or whether any of it will be approved at all—is still unclear.
During the nights I stayed at the hospital, I sometimes walked the corridor. One evening I saw a group of young people waiting outside the CCU, visibly panicked. From what they said, someone had suffered a sudden heart attack after being pressured to drink. The guilt on their faces was obvious.
After seeing all of this up close, the warnings people repeat so often no longer feel abstract at all.