Dave Wietecha knows the dangers that accompany stent surgery—he consults with doctors about the tools they use and their placement of stents during the procedure. But when his father needed stent surgery, Wietecha found himself in the waiting room instead of the operating room.
“My customers are interventional
cardiologists. Every week, I put on scrubs and watch our devices being used in
the operating room. I act as a consultant and I’m often asked for advice on what
kind of wire and balloon to use in placing the stent. I’ve been involved in
hundreds of these procedures.
“In March 2006, my dad had a stress test and was referred to a cardiologist who did an angiogram that identified a problem: plaque buildup in excess of 90 percent in his artery.
“During the procedure, I was out in the waiting room with my mother. On a normal day, I would have been thinking about checking my e-mails and other business-related things. But this was my dad and he was getting one of our products: a drug-eluting stent.
“A lot can go wrong, depending on the patient’s anatomy and the severity of the blockages. Every case is unique; you never really know what complications might arise until you get inside the vessels and see what you are dealing with.
“Now, when I get a call from someone saying they have a friend or a parent with a heart problem, I know that it’s not about the logistics or the product, it’s about your loved one. It’s no longer just a patient or a day in a catheterization lab. It’s someone’s family member or friend. It was the most connected I’ve ever been to what I do.”
