Angels among us
Carol Kraemer believes angels were watching over her during a harrowing drive home from her grandson’s rehearsal dinner earlier this month.
This longtime middle Tennessee resident began feeling faint on the way back to her home in Wilson County. It wasn’t the first time.
“I had a couple of episodes before where I started to feel faint, almost to the point of blacking out,” Carol said. “I went to a cardiologist who put a monitor on me.”
This time, the feeling returned suddenly. Carol turned to her husband, Norm, and said, “It’s happening again,” before losing consciousness behind the wheel.
While unconscious, Carol ran two red lights. Norm couldn’t stop the car because of the rigidity of her grip on the wheel. Before they reached a third intersection, Norm managed to pull the car to the side of the road, something he still calls a miracle.
A passerby noticed the couple and pulled over to help, parking his truck at an angle to shield their car.
“This wonderful man pulled over and asked if we were okay and if he could help,” Carol said. “When Norm told him we were having a medical emergency, he said he knew just where to go and led us to TriStar Summit Medical Center.”
The Good Samaritan helped Norm get Carol to the emergency room. Later, Carol learned the man was only in the area because he was making a late-night pizza run for his wife.
“It wasn’t a coincidence that he was there at that time,” she said.
Dr. Muhammad Asad and Dr. Getu Assefa, both with Centennial Heart at TriStar Summit, collaborated to stabilize and place her heart monitor. Together, they expedited the review of her device data and confirmed she needed a pacemaker. Thanks to Dr. Assefa’s expertise, Carol was able to have the procedure close to home, avoiding the stress of being transferred elsewhere.
“Dr. Assefa is so kind — you can tell he just cares deeply about his patients,” Carol said. “From the moment I walked into the hospital, I could tell that the people here love their jobs and care deeply. They don’t spell job ‘J-O-B’ they spell it ‘J-O-Y.’”
Carol said she feels surrounded by angels — from the stranger who stopped to help to the doctors who cared for her.
“All these angels were around me this week,” Carol said. “Regardless of what faith they are or what they call themselves, they reflected it, and it makes all the difference in the healing process.”
Dr. Assefa said caring for Carol was an honor.
“It was a great privilege and honor to take care of Carol,” he said. “I am overjoyed to see she was very satisfied with our compassionate care. This positive outcome is always our goal, and we treat each individual patient with utmost compassion here at TriStar Summit.”