St. Panteleimon saves a young cardiac patient

Christ is risen! Truly He is risen!

 St. Panteleimon the Great Martyr and Unmercenary (source)

   

Below you will read another clear example of our living faith and the palpable presence of the Saints in our life. The cardiologist Mr. Vasilios K. confesses an astonishing experience and a great miracle by the great Physician, our Saint Panteleimon.

   

I will mention in detail one of the many medical miracles which many of my colleagues have experienced in their medical careers without always being communicated publically. It was the summer of 2000 or 2001, I don’t remember the exact year, and I was on call as the specialist Cardiologist in the Hospital “Soteria”. I always took the so-called “German time” [shift] 3-6AM.
   

Like every call, even though it was summer, it was sufficiently exhausting. After 5AM, however, there were no patients coming to the emergency room. It was the morning of July 27^th, and at 6AM I went off shift. At 5:55AM, I, exhausted but joyous, began to gather my things to begin my vacation, and to close my call book to leave.

   

Then, there entered a stretcher from an ambulance. It was a woman whom the EMS said was from the community hospital “Gennemata”, who was having chest pains, and asked to be transferred to our hospital, to be examined by a Cardiologist. I told the EMS to put her in the exam room, while she tried to console me, saying: “Doctor, don’t worry, she has nothing wrong, she is 45 years old, it’s probably her nerves.” As I entered the room, however, the nurse called out: “Doctor, quickly. She is in cardiac arrest!”

   

I ran over and began resuscitation, defibrillation, etc. We worked on her for a while, but the patient had flat-lined and cardiac, pulmonary and cerebrally the patient was dead, and the nurses were preparing to transfer her to the morgue. Deeply upset for this young woman, a thought struck me like lightening, that it was the feast of St. Panteleimon. I grabbed the defibrillator and entreated within me: St. Panteleimon, you are a physician, help this young woman today on your feast.” Immediately I did the medically pointless defibrillation, because the monitor showed no signs of life, but the monitor them immediately began to show a heartbeat, pointing towards a heart attack.

   

Immediately we took her to the cardiac unit. Note that the woman, throughout our whole encounter, did not see me at all, for she was in cardiac arrest or in a coma. I left exhausted for my house, and I put the event out of my mind for the rest of my summer vacation. I returned on August 14^th at 8AM for work, and when I greeted the nurses of the morning shift, immediately I remembered the event. I asked if the patient on that call was still living, even though I didn’t remember her name, and the nurse replied: today, she is going to that room. Without wearing my jacket, I ran to the room that she indicated. Without speaking I saw a woman who was eating her breakfast sitting upright. As soon as she saw me, her face shown, and she said: “Thank you for saving my life.” I told her that, no, someone else had saved her. With tears in my eyes, she showed me an icon on her bureau.

   

It was St. Panteleimon. Truly moved and shaken, I left her room without saying another word. To this day, I do not know the name of this woman. This is a sign of the living presence of our faith in God and of our Saints.

With respect,

Vasilios K., Cardiologist

Athens

   

(amateur translation of text from source)

 

St. Panteleimon the Great Martyr and Unmercenary (source)

  

Christ is risen from the dead, by dead, trampling down upon death, and to those in the tombs, He has granted life! Truly the Lord is risen!