Imagine being on the brink of losing your spouse from COVID-19 and having to make some tough decisions. Perhaps a few months ago you pictured many more years together and now you’ve learned your spouse is dying. For Michael McPeek and his wife Anne-Marie, they’ve had to navigate this heartbreaking situation during the pandemic, and they’re not alone. Fortunately, they’ve had a few angels along the way who’ve helped guide them.
Dr. Elise Fazio
Elise Fazio, DO, a palliative care physician at McKay Dee Hospital, is one such angel. Dr. Fazio met with Michael face to face to offer some guidance after Anne-Marie’s hospitalization where she had complications from COVID-19.
When Dr. Fazio first met Anne-Marie on McKay-Dee’s COVID-19 medical floor, she’d been hospitalized for weeks, primarily in the ICU. Anne-Marie had stabilized, but was still struggling with confusion, cough, weakness, and poor appetite. Understanding her treatment preferences was difficult due to her confusion, so Dr. Fazio had to rely on her husband Michael for decision-making.
“Anne-Marie is the love of his life and Michael had hoped they’d have many more years together,” says Dr. Fazio. “She’d previously been healthy before COVID-19, so this was a shock. Because this illness can be so unpredictable, I wanted to clarify her goals moving forward and have a conversation about what she wanted for her future.”
Since Michael couldn’t be with his wife in-person to talk things through, Dr. Fazio decided to meet him in the hospital lobby and offer support on how to make decisions on his wife’s behalf. She says, “We knew Anne-Marie was ready to go home, but it wasn’t clear what would happen from there. Michael really wanted to keep her comfortable and give her a chance to fully recover, but not put her through anything that wouldn’t be beneficial.”
Anne-Marie and Michael during better days.
Michael says speaking face to face with Dr. Fazio meant the world to him. “She understood very well that I could be losing my wife of almost 34 years,” he says. “Dr. Fazio was exceptionally compassionate and helped translate our decisions to the care team. She spoke with me at length and thoroughly understood our situation and applied extraordinary wisdom and logic, while being careful not to push anything on us.”
Michael connected with Dr. Fazio again on the phone in the days following discharge when Anne-Marie’s health declined at home. They discussed readmission to the hospital and Anne-Marie likely dying in the hospital versus enrolling in hospice services at home. He says, “It’s been really hard, but these conversations have helped both me and Anne-Marie become far more comfortable of the path we’d chosen.”
Dr. Fazio says she’s walked through this process with so many COVID-19 patients that she’s lost track. “The biggest part of my job is helping patients and their families understand their treatment options and recommending the options that best line up with their goals and values,” she says.
Michael isn’t certain how much longer his wife will hang on, though he says she keeps defying the odds. Michael says Anne-Marie has always been energetic and they were active and living a normal life before COVID.
“The two things she loved doing most were keeping her fabulous flower garden and going to casinos,” he says. “While we’re not certain of the future, we appreciate the healthcare workers and those who are supporting us during this difficult time."