On Friday, the Heart Walk Torch made its final Catholic Health stop at Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, building awareness ahead of the September 12 event and highlighting the importance of heart health and CPR.
For Sal Buscaglia, the message is personal. The heart attack survivor remembers coming home from an event and telling his wife he wasn’t feeling well.
“I came home from an event, and I told my wife I wasn’t feeling good,” Buscaglia said. “She said, ‘Pull over,’ and I said there is a lot of traffic. I will make it home. I made it home, but not for long.”
His wife immediately rushed him to the hospital, but Buscaglia’s heart stopped on the way. She began CPR before paramedics arrived and took over, rushing him to the hospital. Doctors discovered a 100% blockage in a major heart artery, a severe blockage commonly associated with a “widow-maker” heart attack.
Buscaglia said doctors later told him how unlikely his survival was.
“The chances of surviving a widow-maker are about 10 to 12%,” he said. “The doctor came up after I got out of a coma and said I should play the lottery because the chances I had were 2%.”
His experience is one reason health care providers and the American Heart Association are emphasizing preparedness.
The Heart Walk Torch is traveling across Western New York ahead of the September 12 walk, with Mercy Hospital serving as the final Catholic Health stop this week.
WATCH: American Heart Association’s Heart Walk returning to WNY after decade-long absence
Justin King, development director for the Buffalo American Heart Association, said the Heart Walk is about more than fundraising.
“Heart Walk is helping Buffalo become a community of lifesavers through CPR initiatives,” King said, with the goal of ensuring people are confident and prepared to perform CPR when it matters most.
Cardiologist Dr. Eram Chaudhry said prevention and early intervention are also critical.
“I think it is absolutely important that we get ahead of the disease,” Chaudhry said, emphasizing preventive care, diagnostics and advances in heart-health technology.
For Buscaglia, sharing his story is about making sure others are prepared for the unexpected.
“You just don’t know,” he said. “You could be at home, everything is going great, no symptoms, and all of a sudden a loved one has a heart attack, and you aren’t prepared for that. When you know CPR, it gives them a chance of making it.”
The American Heart Association’s Heart Walk is scheduled for September 12 in Western New York, bringing survivors, families, health care workers and community members together to raise awareness about heart disease and stroke.
