Brooke Larsen, RN
Brooke Larsen, RN, a triage nurse at Southwest Cardiology at St. George Regional Hospital, has dedicated her career to helping people with heart issues. Though it wasn’t a path she would have chosen, her own experiences as a heart patient over the past 20+ years have helped her connect with patients and their loved ones. Today, she feels fortunate to be the person who tells patients they can get through it.
Starting in her early 20s, Brooke began experiencing heart issues. In the years since, she’s had three open heart surgeries and now has a mechanical heart valve. She says her many experiences being a patient, a caregiver, and also a family member of a patient have given her a unique perspective.
Brooke’s coworkers at Southwest Cardiology recently nominated her as an “honorary charge nurse” because of her leadership and the example she shows for patients and caregivers. Her coworker Brittany Doman, RN, says while the clinic doesn’t have an official charge nurse, the honorary designation is a perfect fit for Brooke, who’s also worked in the ED and cath lab/interventional radiology at St. George Regional and in the anesthesia department at Utah Valley.
“Brooke is a natural leader,” says Brittany. “I’ve observed so many ways she’s gone above and beyond to help patients. She takes her personal heart background and uses it to help others. Many times, patients have stopped by the clinic with questions about open heart, and Brooke is able to sympathize with them.”
“I don’t share my story with a lot of patients, but when I do decide to share parts of it, it’s really meaningful,” says Brooke, who says her many experiences help her comfort her own patients on a very compassionate level.
Brooke had just had her first baby when she began having health issues she couldn’t explain. She was dealing with headaches and very low energy, but her care team thought it might be related to being a new mom. Then one morning she recalls her pinky finger was painfully swollen. Soon after, on her way to take her new baby to meet her coworkers, she had a sudden onset severe headache while at a stoplight. She could barely drive herself and after visiting her coworkers, she became too weak to carry him back out to the car. A few hours later, she lost her speech and her husband rushed her to the ED.
“When I learned what was wrong, my life changed forever,” she says. The diagnosis was endocarditis on her mitral valve.
“I learned I’d had an infection on my heart for many weeks,” Brooke says. “The infection had caused an abnormal growth (or vegetation) that was flicking off small pieces of the infection into my body through my bloodstream. Each time my heart would beat, I was at risk for a piece of the vegetation breaking off. One of the pieces made it to my brain causing an abscess that grew until it essentially caused a brain bleed.”
The endocarditis left her with a mitral valve heart murmur, but she was able to recover over a period of years and have two more children. She regularly saw a cardiologist and was determined to be fine, though she had to put her plans to get an advanced degree on hold.
In her early 30s, she learned she needed open heart surgery, as her mitral valve had become completely prolapsed. Seven years later, she needed a second open heart surgery, which she says unfortunately didn’t go as well as planned. It was followed by a third less than a year later, which she hopes will be the last.
During her last surgery, Brooke received a mechanical heart valve that requires her to be on blood thinners the rest of her life. The mechanical heart value is the most long-lasting type of replacement valves and is designed to last throughout her life.
“I’d never want to go through it all again, but I’ve learned a lot of valuable things,” says Brooke, who has had the same cardiac physician as her father who passed away last year. “Mark Pulsipher, MD, is an amazing physician who’s always taken good care of me and also my dad. I’m so grateful for him.”
Brooke says her journey has allowed her to see everything now from so many angles. She says her patients often have ideas in their minds and fears of what a heart procedure or surgery will be like, but she actually has the experience to tell them.
“Just last week I was talking to a young guy who most likely needed the same surgery I had,” she says. “He felt horrible, but still wasn’t sure he was ready. He told me he felt like his life was about to be over. I listened and I told him the time will pass, and he’ll heal again. Our bodies are so amazing. I told him how much better I feel today, and the hope is he’ll feel better too.”
Brittany says, “I’ve sat in on one of these conversations and I’ve seen patients who are so grateful that Brooke had been through open heart not once, but three times, and can walk them through the process. She’s really gives people the confidence and reassurance that they’ll be OK. At times, she’s helped people proceed with this life-saving procedure.”
“It makes me feel so happy and fulfilled to be able to talk our patients through such difficult things,” says Brooke, who is finally pursuing her advanced degree to become a nurse practitioner.
Shey Grossen, senior practice manager of Southwest Cardiology, says, “Brooke is a fantastic cardiology triage nurse who has overcome some significant heart challenges and related surgeries. She’s used her situation to educate and put at ease countless patients who are going through similar issues.”
“We’re very lucky to have her in Southwest Cardiology. She adds a lot of value to our team,” says Brittany.
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Starting in her early 20s, Brooke began experiencing heart issues. In the years since, she’s had three open heart surgeries and now has a mechanical heart valve. She says her many experiences being a patient, a caregiver, and also a family member of a patient have given her a unique perspective.
Brooke’s coworkers at Southwest Cardiology recently nominated her as an “honorary charge nurse” because of her leadership and the example she shows for patients and caregivers. Her coworker Brittany Doman, RN, says while the clinic doesn’t have an official charge nurse, the honorary designation is a perfect fit for Brooke, who’s also worked in the ED and cath lab/interventional radiology at St. George Regional and in the anesthesia department at Utah Valley.
“Brooke is a natural leader,” says Brittany. “I’ve observed so many ways she’s gone above and beyond to help patients. She takes her personal heart background and uses it to help others. Many times, patients have stopped by the clinic with questions about open heart, and Brooke is able to sympathize with them.”
“I don’t share my story with a lot of patients, but when I do decide to share parts of it, it’s really meaningful,” says Brooke, who says her many experiences help her comfort her own patients on a very compassionate level.
Brooke had just had her first baby when she began having health issues she couldn’t explain. She was dealing with headaches and very low energy, but her care team thought it might be related to being a new mom. Then one morning she recalls her pinky finger was painfully swollen. Soon after, on her way to take her new baby to meet her coworkers, she had a sudden onset severe headache while at a stoplight. She could barely drive herself and after visiting her coworkers, she became too weak to carry him back out to the car. A few hours later, she lost her speech and her husband rushed her to the ED.
“When I learned what was wrong, my life changed forever,” she says. The diagnosis was endocarditis on her mitral valve.
“I learned I’d had an infection on my heart for many weeks,” Brooke says. “The infection had caused an abnormal growth (or vegetation) that was flicking off small pieces of the infection into my body through my bloodstream. Each time my heart would beat, I was at risk for a piece of the vegetation breaking off. One of the pieces made it to my brain causing an abscess that grew until it essentially caused a brain bleed.”
The endocarditis left her with a mitral valve heart murmur, but she was able to recover over a period of years and have two more children. She regularly saw a cardiologist and was determined to be fine, though she had to put her plans to get an advanced degree on hold.
In her early 30s, she learned she needed open heart surgery, as her mitral valve had become completely prolapsed. Seven years later, she needed a second open heart surgery, which she says unfortunately didn’t go as well as planned. It was followed by a third less than a year later, which she hopes will be the last.
During her last surgery, Brooke received a mechanical heart valve that requires her to be on blood thinners the rest of her life. The mechanical heart value is the most long-lasting type of replacement valves and is designed to last throughout her life.
“I’d never want to go through it all again, but I’ve learned a lot of valuable things,” says Brooke, who has had the same cardiac physician as her father who passed away last year. “Mark Pulsipher, MD, is an amazing physician who’s always taken good care of me and also my dad. I’m so grateful for him.”
Brooke says her journey has allowed her to see everything now from so many angles. She says her patients often have ideas in their minds and fears of what a heart procedure or surgery will be like, but she actually has the experience to tell them.
“Just last week I was talking to a young guy who most likely needed the same surgery I had,” she says. “He felt horrible, but still wasn’t sure he was ready. He told me he felt like his life was about to be over. I listened and I told him the time will pass, and he’ll heal again. Our bodies are so amazing. I told him how much better I feel today, and the hope is he’ll feel better too.”
Brittany says, “I’ve sat in on one of these conversations and I’ve seen patients who are so grateful that Brooke had been through open heart not once, but three times, and can walk them through the process. She’s really gives people the confidence and reassurance that they’ll be OK. At times, she’s helped people proceed with this life-saving procedure.”
“It makes me feel so happy and fulfilled to be able to talk our patients through such difficult things,” says Brooke, who is finally pursuing her advanced degree to become a nurse practitioner.
Shey Grossen, senior practice manager of Southwest Cardiology, says, “Brooke is a fantastic cardiology triage nurse who has overcome some significant heart challenges and related surgeries. She’s used her situation to educate and put at ease countless patients who are going through similar issues.”
“We’re very lucky to have her in Southwest Cardiology. She adds a lot of value to our team,” says Brittany.
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