Pat Cochran

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.


As many of you know, Pat had a cardiovascular event back on Jan 28. She was rushed to the hospital with an aortic dissection, basically a tear in the wall of the aorta, right near the exit from the heart. While her heart is in good shape for her age, the tear has caused fluid to leak, much like a blister fills with fluid. The fluid builds up around her lungs and compromises her breathing.  3 times now, in the ensuing weeks, she has had to have the fluid drained by a relatively simple procedure of inserting a needle in her back and drawing off the fluid. Pat was in the hospital for a couple weeks then in Rennes skilled nursing facility for about 3 weeks before being discharged because her limitations prevented her from making any progress in rehab. We took her home last Sat. and set her up with hospice care with son-in-law Dave Moore providing the live in care. Unfortunately that only lasted about 48 hrs when she filled with fluid again and had to be drained. This time a drain was left in so fluid wouldn't build up. It is our hope that the fluid will slow down, which it is slowly doing. if it gets to less than 50 ml per day the drain can be removed. This challenge has left Pat substantially weakened and needing real nursing care so she signed into the beautiful Unity hospice facility in De Pere. While weak, Pat is making progress and eating. She has already beaten the odds as surgeons tell us most people with her type of damage only survive a day or 2. It's been  5 weeks and she is comfortable and improving. Pat loves having visitors and while a little confused on some details, she is largely with it, able to chat and glad for the company. If you visit, remember she cannot see or hear well so just tell her who you are and speak loud. We are grateful for your prayers as we navigate this new season of life with Pat! 
Tracy
One last thing for local friends. We have a red "guest book" in Pat's room. If you visit please sign in with an encouraging word or a fun memory or even just your name. Please know how much we appreciate your care and support!