Being in the hospital with a newborn is equal parts exhilarating and exhausting. As a new mom, getting the “lay of the land” is tough. I remember being so hyper-focused on myself, my husband, and my child, that practically nothing else registered. So I can’t imagine what it was like for a Utah mom when she thought her world was about to flip upside down as she watched her own dad nearly die right beside her hospital bed.
It was a typical morning in the maternity ward of North Logan’s Cache Valley Hospital. Little Gia had arrived early at 37 weeks, but mom Aintzane Simpkins and baby were doing well enough to have family visit the day after her birth to celebrate.
But everything changed in an instant when Simpkins’ father, Toby Alt, 53, got up to relieve some heartburn.
“All of a sudden, he just falls to the ground,” Simpkins said, according to Fox 13. “Within 30 seconds, there were probably 15, 20 people in this room, trying to revive my dad. In the moment, it’s just, ‘Oh my gosh, my dad is dead,’” she continued.
Alt was, essentially, dead but the hospital’s rapid-response medical team performed CPR and shocked his heart four times with a defibrillator, ultimately bringing him back to life.
Emergency room registered nurse Derek McLeod claimed he firmly believes if Alt hadn’t been right there in the hospital, he would not have survived, according to KGNS News via CNN Newssource.
He was airlifted to Ogden Regional Medical Center, where surgeons implanted a pacemaker to help regulate his heartbeat. McLeod noted Alt’s heart was functioning at only 20% at the time of the incident.
“It really hit close to home for me because this gentleman is the exact same age as me, and I have a grandson,” McLeod said, per Fox 13. “I can’t imagine not being there to watch my grandson grow up.”
Thankfully, Alt is now home and recovering. “We’re very blessed that it happened right here because they saved her grandpa’s life,” said Valerie Aguirre Alt, his wife.
As for Simpkins, her road to delivery wasn’t easy either. She began experiencing contractions early — along with excruciating pain caused by kidney stones. Doctors soon discovered the baby was breech and opted to perform a cesarean section.
“We call her little lifesaver,” Simpkins said. “It’s like [Gia] knew she needed to get out, and we needed grandpa here at the hospital.”
I’m so glad to hear that the new grandfather is doing well, and I hope the rest of Simpkins’ journey into motherhood is as drama-free as possible.
