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Aurora Health Center

Local patient in the right place at the right time

Paul Hautala, 46, had always been a relatively healthy guy, so there really was no reason, he thought, to have a regular physician at this point in life. One day last January however, Paul developed a severe headache, and when it continued for two more days and he started “seeing double,” he knew something was wrong.

Fortunately, the Aurora Health Center in Hartford – about 10 miles from his home in Allenton – had Saturday “walk-in” hours. Following a physical exam with Radu Pirvanescu, MD, an internal medicine physician, Paul set off on a “whirlwind tour” of Aurora Health Care that resulted in not one, but two lifesaving diagnoses.

“Within a matter of days, I found out I had a brain tumor, and during the pre-op physical for surgery to treat it, the doctors discovered a heart blockage,” says Paul. “I was a walking time bomb and it was fortunate I was diagnosed so quickly or I could've had a heart attack and never would've known what hit me.”

“Quickly” is putting it mildly, according to Dr. Pirvanescu. “It's really quite amazing how the sequence of events for this patient unfolded. It would not have gone this way without Aurora Health Care's vast array of specialists and resources and the way we have of working together.”

Here's what happened:

Saturday: Paul comes into the Aurora Health Center in Hartford as a walk-in patient. Concerned about the severity of his headache and vision symptoms, Dr. Pirvanescu arranges for same-day magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at the Aurora Health Center in West Bend.

Sunday: Results of the MRI reveal that Paul has a brain tumor compressing his optical nerve, which is causing the double vision. Dr. Pirvanescu calls on his colleague, Robert Goldman, MD, a neurologist, to see Paul the next day at the Aurora Health Center in West Bend.

Monday: Following their appointment, Dr. Goldman contacts Arvind Ahuja, MD, a nationally-regarded neurosurgeon, who agrees to see Paul on Tuesday at Aurora St. Luke's Medical Center in Milwaukee.

Tuesday: During his evaluation, Dr. Ahuja confirms that surgery is needed to remove the brain tumor and returns Paul to Dr. Pirvanescu for a pre-op physical in Hartford. Wednesday: Paul's pre-op EKG, a routine test, uncovers an abnormal heart rhythm.

Thursday: Paul's stress test confirms that he has cardiovascular disease. Dr. Pirvanescu consults with Ijaz Malik, MD, a cardiovascular disease specialist on site, and schedules Paul for cardiac catheterization within 24 hours at St. Luke's.

Friday: Cardiac catheterization reveals an arterial blockage, which is repaired in the same procedure with angioplasty and a stent to open the artery and restore the normal flow of blood.

“So from Saturday to Friday, we had a walk-in patient who had an MRI, EKG, stress test, surgical and cardiac consults, a pre-op physical and cardiac catheterization,” summarizes Dr. Pirvanescu. “After all that, he was scheduled for Gamma Knife® surgery – brain surgery without a scalpel – at Aurora St. Luke's. In the end, things worked out pretty well for this patient. Paul is doing just fine now, one year later.”

“I was lucky,” says Paul, “lucky to be in the right place at the right time. Aurora made everything seem pretty routine, the way things flowed from one step to the next. I was seeing the people I needed to see right away and it turns out that was really important.”

“Without prompt diagnosis and treatment, Paul could've had irreversible damage from the brain tumor, and with cardiovascular disease, he was really at a very high risk for a heart attack,” explains Dr. Pirvanescu. “From primary care physicians to specialists, the medical services and facilities that people have here in Washington County are excellent,” says Dr. Pirvanescu.

“Aurora Health Care emphasizes access to care in the local community, and I see that happening more and more with the increasing number of specialists coming here from Milwaukee to see our patients. It's outstanding care that is very convenient for people who live in smaller communities and outlying areas. Sometimes patients do have to travel – in Paul's case, for instance for cardiac catheterization and Gamma Knife surgery at St. Luke's. When that's necessary, we have the connections to have patients seen in a timely and coordinated way. They have their procedure done, and then they return to their local community for continuing care.”

“I really appreciated the way that Dr. Pirvanescu kept things going and made it all happen for me,” says Paul. “Each day and each new thing, I kept thinking, ‘What next?' but Aurora would already have it all arranged. They kept me on the right path, seeing the right people.

“I've recovered 100 percent from my experience last year,” says Paul. “Dr. Pirvanescu is now my primary care physician and I also continue to see Dr. Malik for heart care. It's good to know I have great doctors to turn to, right here. Like I said, I feel pretty lucky.”

A doctor to call your own

A primary care physician is a doctor who provides general health care and has the knowledge not only to treat most health conditions, but also to choose the right specialists to treat diseases outside of their field. Primary care physicians include board-certified doctors in:

• Family medicine (children and adults)
• Internal medicine (adult patients)
• Obstetrics/gynecology (adult female patients)
• Pediatrics (children)

See a video introduction of Dr. Pirvanescu

For more information or to schedule an appointment with Dr. Pirvanescu at the Aurora Health Center in Hartford, call 262-670-4000 or at the Aurora Health Center in Slinger, call 262-644-2900.