MASSAPEQUA, N.Y. (1010 WINS) -- A Long Island woman got a chance to thank the emergency responders and hospital workers who saved her life Friday when her heart stopped three times on Jan. 17.
Massapequa resident Valerie Meritz, 65, was experiencing chest pains and asked her husband of 40 years, Martin Saccente, to call an ambulance.
"I wasn't feeling well, and I knew there was something terribly wrong,'" said Meritz.
Her heart stopped twice while an ambulance rushed her to St. Joseph Hospital in Bethpage.
Medic Thomas Dehaan intervened and restarted her heart in each instance.
When she arrived at the hospital, her heart stopped a third time and Dr. Joseph Chirayil saved her life for the third time that day.
“Events like this usually happen in a movie and you never think it’s going to happen to you or someone in your family,” said Saccente. “But it did happen to us and we are so thankful to have trained professionals working together to achieve a successful outcome.”
Once stable, Valerie was transferred to Catholic Health’s St. Francis Hospital & Heart Center where a Dr. Sidharth Yadav performed heart surgery on her.
Within weeks, she was healthy and active.
"I'm happy to be alive,” said Meritz as she thanked the doctors and medical professionals who saved her life.
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