Betty Westphal’s Story

Site created on April 12, 2018

Dear friends,

As some of you may have heard our dearest friend Betty Westphal Neal suffered from a cardiac arrest on Monday, April 9th around 8:00 pm at her home in Eagle. Her roommate was with her and left the room for just one minute to come back to find Betty on the floor not breathing. She called 911 and administered CPR until the paramedics arrived. Betty was transported to Vail Valley Medical Center and was then flown immediately to Denver Health, a level 1 trauma center. 

There Betty was assessed and put into an induced coma to undergo Therapeutic Hpyothermia, which deliberately reduces the core body temperature and has been proven to successfully counteract some of the damage from cardiac arrest.

Over the last several days Betty's body temperature was slowly brought back to normal, they have removed the breathing tube, she has been taken off the ventilator, and has been talking. Yes, Betty is back, with her wit and humor, smiling at her family and friends, and keeping the medical staff on their toes -- especially the speech therapists!

They found that her heart is clear of any blockages, but they are doing further tests to determine the cause of the cardiac arrest. 

Betty's son Jay has been by her side since this happened, while older brother Harrison arrived on April 11 along with Betty's brother Jay and his wife Lydia. Betty is surrounded by caring professionals and a loving group of family and friends. She's surprising the doctors and staff with her ability to bounce back -- she even took a 10 minute walk this morning!

Betty suffered several broken ribs during CPR (which is quite normal) so she's especially taxed, but is focused on resting and healing. Betty has been moved out of ICU and is still at Denver Health while her family determines next steps in her ongoing care.

We would like to acknowledge Betty's roommate Tina for being there, and for all her efforts that helped get Betty to help quickly. Tina is is literally a life saver. Our hearts are grateful.

Please keep Betty and her family in your thoughts and prayers. While there will be a long road to recovery, the doctors are impressed with Betty's response and hopeful for her future


We will have more information as we understand next steps. Thank you all for your love of Betty.


Jay and Harrison Neal
(And Family!)

Newest Update

Resilience and Humor: Betty's Trademark!

Journal entry by Mia Jaekels Vlaar —

Betty is doing remarkably well!  As Liz so eloquently stated Betty is full of wit and humor, charming the staff and astonishing the medical professionals. Betty has been lifted up by both Jay and Harrison, as well as her brother Jay, an MD who arrived with his wife Lydia and has guided the direction of Betty's care as Betty's number one medical advocate. The status of Betty's heart, or what caused the cardiac arrest, is still unknown, and this is currently a primary focus of her care. To this end the doctors are doing a trans esophogeal electrocardiogram today to get a better picture of Betty's heart. There is a small mass on one of her valves that is of concern, and today the doctors should be able to take a closer look at Betty's heart. This procedure will be followed tomorrow by a cardio MRI at a facility that's related to Denver Health, part of the University of Colorado system. This is an ultrasound that will give an entirely different look at the heart, much like the ultrasound many pregnant mothers undergo. Finally on Wednesday the plan is to install a defibrillator, defined as follows: An ICD monitors heart rhythms. If it senses dangerous rhythms, it delivers shocks. This treatment is called defibrillation. An ICD can help control life-threatening arrhythmias, especially those that can cause sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). (Medlineplus.gov). All these measures will help diagnose Betty's condition so we can help her return home to the life and work she loves!

After Wednesday Betty will likely be moved to a rehab center on site at Denver Health where she'll take on up to 3 hours a day of physical therapy. Once she gets her strength up, the hope his Betty should be able to come home to Eagle to continue rehab from her home.

We are working on a fundraising effort to help Betty pay for out of pocket and other expenses, we will update here when we have more on that. Meantime Betty is at Denver Health, Room 752 Pavilion A, 777 Bannock St, Denver, CO 80204.

Betty has been visited by many friends in Denver and she wanted to express her gratitude to all her friends for the cards, calls, flowers, gifts and gift cards that have helped make her hospital stay and the boys' stay more tolerable. 
Read More of the journal titled "Resilience and Humor: Betty's Trademark!"
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