Impact

Sandy Purcell’s Story

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Bon Secours - Greenville, SC

You helped Sandy recover his health after being hospitalized for COVID

Sandy Purcell contracted COVID very early in the pandemic at a time when hospitals were filling up. The family was at their home in the Dominican Republic and it quickly became clear that the local hospital was ill-prepared to treat his case.

Realizing his situation was dire, his family started looking for a hospital in the United States and, through the help of local connections, landed in Greenville, eventually at Bon Secours St. Francis.

When Sandy’s COVID subsided, he was left facing another severe issue.

 

“I was in a bed with muscles that were completely atrophied. I couldn’t raise my legs to get out of bed. I couldn’t even lift my arm to scratch my face.”

 

Sandy needed intense physical therapy for his body to function again. Fortunately, your support ensures that Bon Secours St. Francis Rehabilitation Services are up to the task.

The rehab teams worked with Sandy to rebuild muscle and relearn how to eat and drink, walk up stairs, dress himself and even shower.

“The amount of energy it takes you to do those things is unbelievable for someone who doesn’t have the respiratory strength or muscle,” he says.

Sandy considers himself lucky that he not only survived COVID, but that rehab was able to get him back to his old self.

“When I was going through it, I didn’t think about the fact that there were donors behind the scenes making all the progress I was able to make happen. I sure did start thinking about it after. None of this would have happened without the support that comes from you.”