Metronomes, Medtronic and Medical Miracles

Many years ago a lovely old friend said to me, “Never say no when someone extends an invitation or chance to do something.  Unless you’ve a real reason for not being able to take up the invite, doesn’t matter what it’s for, just go – ‘cause unless you do you will never know what you may have missed.”  

Thank you for those words Fred, for this past period they have rung so true with me.  Life over the years has been a roller coaster, yet I continue to accept those chances you told me to – and the past few months I’ve been given opportunities that have had me on a wonderful, happy merry-go-round of experiences, adventure, fulfilment and gratification.  

None more so than in the past week. 

I am now in Chicago and reflecting on this time last week, a day when my ‘running mate’ and I flew into Minnesota airport and were met, greeted and driven to a hotel in central St Paul’s to begin what was to be an incredible four days of surreality.

I was one of twenty individuals who were accepted by the medical organisation Medtronic to compete in the Medtronic Twin Cities marathon or ten-mile road race. 

Over 460 people had applied to be one of the twenty; I have yet to fathom how on earth they could have sifted through those 460 applications and come up with my being one of the thankful individuals eventually chosen. 

It was in late June when I received notification of being one of the ‘Global Champions’ team.

Part of the acceptance onto this amazing team was the condition that Medtronic requested each accepted recipient would be flown to Minnesota-St Paul, accommodated and looked after, but had to compete in one of the two events with a nominated running partner.  Therefore, each of the Global Champions were in the envious position of asking a fellow runner to partner them on the journey.  How lucky were those other twenty individuals!  Forty of us … being hosted by a most incredible medical company.

The 40 incredible & truly special individuals

 

As most of you know, I have had a strong and close association with many medical companies in my lifetime.  Not only due to the many years of my having an annoying heart problem but more specifically with having to deal with medical experts through the five-plus years my husband was treated for his brain tumour.  

Throughout those five-plus years the gratitude I extended to their ability to keep him alive was directed solely to their individual skills, rather than to the medical resources and products they had at their finger tips to extend his life expectancy from 12 weeks to 5 or more years.

Much was the same respect when I was finally fitted with a pacemaker.  A small piece of modern technology, the size of a small stop watch, that was fitted into my chest two years ago, to make my heart work like a metronome – for the first time in my life it tick-tocked my heart beat at a regular tick-tock rate.  For the first time in years I no longer live with the thought that at anytime I could travel the pathway to the heavens due to a heart attack, or a stroke caused by a badly functioning heart.

It was not until my pacemaker was fitted that I realised just how remarkable modern medical technology has developed.  Each time I have had to visit the cardiac ward at the hospital to have the pacemaker checked and tuned I have gone in with excitement in seeing and learning and understanding how this small piece of equipment was making my life so much easier.  I never want to leave the technicians rooms because the fascination of how it functions has me intrigued, wanting to know more on how it worked and almost transfixed by any explanations of its workings.  I get excited when I receive the six month letter of invitation back to the hospital to have its batteries and workings checked.

Then last week, I was flown into Minnesota with my running mate and hosted by one of the largest medical companies in the world to be part of their 2018 Global Champions team.  

I actually won Lotto.

I met with the most incredible athletes.  Nineteen other people, from all over the world.  Nineteen amazing people – from different countries, different ethnicities, different social stratas, different ages, different worlds, different stories.  Different in every way, except we all had one sameness.

We had all had our lives enhanced, bettered and extended by a technological medical device that had been developed by a medical company somewhere in the world.  

No longer the attitude that the big, corporate medical companies are only out to fleece the world to make profits.  Not that I ever had that.  But I had never really thought how much the world owes to medical companies and the developments and technologies those companies are constantly working on to enhance, improve and save lives, particularly over the past two centuries. 

Our group of 20 Global Champions and their running partners were hosted by Medtronic for the full four day marathon period – and during that time we were offered the opportunity to visit the research and development offices of their main head office.

It was during this visit to their technological departments that the full clarity of just how much the efforts of very clever, intelligent and dedicated employees of that company (and other medical companies) contribute to the lives of everyone in this world.

I saw machines worth millions of dollars testing various, minor areas of how only one tiny part of a certain medical device that would be implanted in a human may work.  I saw one multi-million dollar machine that was only the size of a large washing machine, working solely on how the surface of a certain material used on a device would stop the body from adhering tissue to it, thus ensuring the device could be enduring.  I cannot explain in my basic language what so many of the workings we were shown were testing and doing.  

What I can explain is watching and listening to the staff, technicians and scientists who work on developing incomprehensible technological devices and to their dedication, their intense devotion and their enthusiasm for the work they do, simply to help develop yet another device to help some individual’s life somewhere in the world.

Among my fellow Global Champions there were others who had, like me, been implanted with pacemakers – for the same or different heart faults than mine.

Learning, watching and seeing how the company is developing those to be smaller, more effective, less intrusive and less costly pacemakers to those who will require them was fascinating.

There were others in the team who have to use diabetic insulin pumps to allow themselves to live.  Just learning about those devices and how my fellow team members had to live with them was a whole new insight into another person’s daily routine that most of us would never know about.

This company makes, develops and is constantly redeveloping the insulin pumps so that the use and cost to the individuals makes them become more and more accessible. 

Other Global Champions have had neurostimulators implanted.  I had never understood what a ‘neurostimulator’ was.  But I certainly do now – and am humbled, totally humbled by those who have had these amazing devices implanted and have gone on to achieve incredible feats.

One young twenty-year old in the group had been stricken with a disorder I had never heard of before, dystonia (symptoms not unlike cerebral palsy).  He had a Deep Brain Stimulator (DBS) implant.  This gave him a life, a life from being bedridden with twisted arms and legs to a life where he was able to run a ten mile race on Sunday.  His story this past weekend is worth a movie.

Another amazing 59 year old, suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, also had a DBS implanted.  We watched a short video of this incredible lady with the implant turned on, then turned off.  We all watched in awe at the difference the device had made to her life.  She ran an inspiring run on Sunday.

Another individual had a severe form of ulcerative colitis in his healthy teenage years. The results not good – until he had his large intestine completely removed and a J-pouch constructed (you may have to Google it).  Something that could never have been dreamt of years ago.  He lives a normal life now and ran a great run on Sunday.

All these 20 Global Champions have had their lives totally changed by medical devices.  Medical devices that would never have been contemplated, developed and refined had it not been for medical companies around the world. Or, more importantly, the employees, the researchers,  engineers, the developers, the scientists, the technological brains, the unique and passionate individuals that the medical companies employ.

Twenty grateful Medtronic Global Champions, and their running partners, have gone home from an amazing few days in the Twin Cities with an enhance attitude of gratitude, thanks to Medronic and it’s devoted employees.

The 20 Medtronic Global Champions
Friends for 'Life'

 

At the Medtronic luncheon at their HO

                                http://www.medtronic.com/us-en/about/global-champions.html

I don't know how I will ever be able to thank Medtronic and the events team for those few days of magic  ... but I shall forever be trying to figure out how ....