To the editor:

This letter is a big thank you to all the hospital employees in the cardiac department of Kelowna General Hospital.

On the evening of May 26, my wife had to call 911, I was short of breath and having a really hard time. The paramedics who came to our home were unbelievable, so calm and friendly, they took exceptional care of me and they knew where I needed to be.

Once we arrived at the hospital, the nursing staff in the emergency department were incredible. I was examined with every machine know to modern medicine. They discovered that I was in the midst of having a quiet heart attack while in the emergency department. This situation prompted an immediate angiogram which showed how bad things were. I was scheduled for heart bypass surgery the very next day on June 1.

The surgeons who operated on me were Dr. Guy Fradet and Dr. Calvin Wan. My cardiologist was Dr. Petr Polasek. All the nurses in ICU who looked after me for 24 hours after my surgery were outstanding.

This hospital is world class. We are so lucky to be living in a community where this level of care is available. This is a thank you to the hospital and a note of gratitude from myself and my family. I have been given a new lease on life.

Bob Waterfield

West Kelowna