Longtime Janesville resident Hazel Connors has entrusted SSM Health with her care for years.
When Connors injured her ankle last winter, she knew where to go for help. What she didn’t expect was to have her dermatology provider, physician assistant Deidre Pribek, PA-C, catch a serious issue with her healing.
“I think I actually owe my life to Deidre Pribek,” Connors said.
The events began to unfold after Connors slipped on some ice and took a nasty fall.
Following an ambulance ride to the SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital – Janesville Emergency Room, x-rays showed that three bones had been broken in Connors’ ankle. She would require surgery.
“The ER team was top notch, and the doctor even called me the next day to see how I was doing,” she said.
Surgery and initial recovery went as planned, but Connors’ long-term healing was extremely slow.
“I had never broken a bone before, so I really didn’t know what was normal,” Connors said.
By extreme luck - or as Connors quips, “a little help from someone above,” – she had an appointment scheduled with Pribek.
“I see Deidre every six months because I had cancer and need to get my skin checked,” Connors said. “She noticed I was really limping at my appointment.”
After asking some basic questions and hearing Connors’ story, Pribek asked if it was okay to look at her ankle before she went home.
Unfortunately, Connors’ ankle did not look right. It was red and warm to the touch. Pribek suggested that a culture should be taken, and not long after, lab results confirmed an infection.
Antibiotics were prescribed to help Connors’ body fight against two different types of bacteria.
“If I hadn’t had Deidre take the time and care to look, the infection could have gotten to the point where I required an amputation, or I could have developed a sepsis blood infection,” Connors said.
Connors is now completely recovered from the infection and has regained her strength. She spent her holidays cooking and baking, as well as spending time with her husband of 45 years, Terry.She’s grateful to have her health and mobility, as she is a great grandma to eight girls whom she loves to spend time with.
“I didn’t know beans from barley in terms of what my leg should have looked like and I would’ve just kept limping along until something could have happened,” she said. “Thankfully, I had Deidre and others on the SSM Health team who helped me.”
