'Never expected I would end up a patient': Heart Institute employee saved by the hospital

Aaron Robinson has worked at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute Foundation for more than a decade.

"It does great work in that it supports the tremendous work at the institute," Robinson says.

The foundation raises critical funds and awareness. Robinson and others helping to provide world-class cardiac care.

"It’s very rare to have dealings with someone who doesn’t have a relative or a friend that’s received care at the institute," Robinson says.

And Robinson believes that, and not just because he works at the UOHI.

The champion and employee of the Ottawa Heart Institute was also saved by it.

"I certainly never expected when I started at the Heart Institute, or in the years after, that I would end up as a patient."

The Robinson family enjoys a chat in park, close to their Ottawa home and Aaron’s workplace, the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. (Joel Haslam/CTV News Ottawa)

It was a hot August night when Aaron began feeling unwell. He was sweating profusely.

"I looked at myself in the mirror and I had sweated all the way through my hair," Robinson recalls.

"It looked like I had just come in from a rain shower."

As his chest pain intensified, Robinson’s conditioned worsened.

"It was at that point I realized, I think I’m having a heart attack," Robinson says.

His wife Nat called 911 and alerted their daughter, Bea that Robinson was in trouble.

“My mom was very pale and said, 'Bea, dad might be having a heart attack. Pack a bag,'" she says.

Paramedics escorted Robinson outside on a stretcher. 

“I told the paramedic I thought I was going to pass out,” he says.

Sixteen-year-old Bea, then just 13, recalls vividly the events of that night, and her dad’s rapid deterioration.

“Through the doorway I saw my dad fiddling with his glasses in his hands and holding his wallet," she says.

"But then his arms went slack and he became unresponsive on our front lawn,” she says, tears filling her eyes.

Robinson remembers opening his eyes in the ambulance.

"I was revived in the ambulance. I had gone into cardiac arrest," he says grimly.

"I said to the paramedic, 'I didn’t just pass out, did I?' And she said, 'Nope, no you didn’t,'" he remembers.

Thinking only of his family, and concerned he might not live, Robinson made a request of his paramedic.

"I remember I asked her to pass on some messages to my daughter if I didn’t make it, and to my wife," says the husband and father, his voice breaking.

As his loved ones, Bea and Nat, watched the ambulance drive away, they wondered if they’d ever see him alive again.

"Every single time I’ve needed him, he’s always been there for me, so for him to just be gone was like this massive shock," says Bea, her voice breaking with emotion.

Robinson’s heart attack could have been fatal. His main coronary artery completely blocked.

"It’s what they euphemistically call a 'widow maker,'" Robinson says.

He would require two stents to clear the blockages.

And while waiting for his procedure, Robinson says his University of Ottawa Heart Institute caregivers provided comfort he’ll never forget.

The Robinson family shares a laugh around the dining room table of their Ottawa home. The family is grateful for a future together, thanks to Aaron’s life-saving care at the University of Ottawa Heart Insititute. (Joel Haslam/CTV News Ottawa)

As a result of pandemic protocols, Robinson’s family couldn’t be with him. 

But a nurse ensured he never felt alone.

"I was pretty shook up and she said, 'Do you need anything?' and I just put out my hand," he recalls, fighting back tears.

“And she held my hand,” he says, with a warm smile.

After about a week, Robinson was released and was able to go home to a family insistent on forced rest and relaxation.

"It’s a little hazy, but knowing my wife I was immediately shepherded upstairs into bed," he laughs.

It also means Robinson could go back to work at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute Foundation.

"I can’t imagine not being the foundation and the institute. These people have the highest moral character. They’re just great, decent people to work with day in and day out," he says.

"I received so many kind messages from colleagues when I was in the institute. I was intensely moved."

"It’s an honour to work there."

It’s a place ensuring people, just like Robinson, have time and futures with those they love.

"I don’t think there’s any way I could repay them for what they did for me, bringing my dad back to me," says Bea.

"It’s just a complete miracle."

"Thanks to the treatment I received I will get to see my daughter get married, graduate from university, and be there for my wife," says a grateful Robinson.

"There’s nothing more important. I owe that to the Heart Institute."

To support life-saving care, visit februaryisheartmonth.ca. This month all donations will be matched.