Heather Torke

Heather started about 4 yrs ago with a total knee replacement. She has had problems all along and on Friday Sept. 9th her leg was really red so she went into Granite to clinic where they called her Ortho Surgeon. He wanted her to come their so they transferred her to Fairview Ridges in Burnsville.  At 10:00 Sat. am she had her knee opened up to treat the infection, the surgeon told Tara to come back in an hour to see her. Alison and I arrived at 2:00 pm and she was on a ventilator. The doctors said she that her stats dropped so they had to place her on the vent.  Fairview Ridges  didn't want to keep her there due to her declining health & did not have the equipment.  They then transferred to the U of M where she was put in the critical care unit. They were fighting her infection with antibiotics but by 8:30 pm nothing was working. At the time the only option was to place her on the ECMO machine, which is a tube they put in her neck bypassing the lung and going to the heart. This takes the blood out and removes the carbon dioxide ,puts oxygen in it and returns it. She is completely paralyzed from sedation to keep her still at this time and for her lungs to rest and make sure the cannula does not move. At this time visiting is very limited until she starts to respond. Heather has a long road ahead. 


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