-
Sharing Mayo Clinic
Couple grateful for longtime care at Mayo Clinic
Share this:
Karl and Eileen Rauschert of Bushnell, Ill., have been coming to Mayo Clinic in Florida for 23 years. Their experiences have been anything but routine.
A visit in 2009 is a perfect example. Just as Mrs. Rauschert was about to undergo a colonoscopy, her husband, who was along for moral support, experienced a racing heartbeat.
“I mentioned it to a person at the front desk,” recalls Mr. Rauschert. “About three seconds later, I was in cardiology, and they were taking care of me.”
Mrs. Rauschert was kept abreast of what was happening to her husband. “Just before my exam, the nurse told me my husband was being seen by a cardiologist. When I woke up, they told me he was OK, and then wheeled me to him right away.”
The Rauscherts say this scary experience shows the incredible caring atmosphere they’ve found at Mayo Clinic in Florida. Over the years, they have sought care here for kidney disease, breast cancer, heart ailments and joint problems.
The couple traveled to Jacksonville for their first visit via a 42-foot sailboat, their winter home.
They recall it was a bit of a challenge to schedule the initial visit. “I had to call several times just for that first appointment because weather impacts your travel plans so much,” Mrs. Rauschert says.
The first visit impressed the Rauscherts. “When I walked in the front door, a woman was waiting there for me,” recalls Mrs. Rauschert. “It was the same woman that I’d been talking to on the phone about my appointment. She said, ‘I just had to meet you because we had so many fun conversations.’”
Though the practice and staff have grown tremendously, the couple still marvels at the convenience of a multidisciplinary practice and the compassion of the staff. “I’ll never forget the look on my doctor’s face when he told me I had breast cancer,” Mrs. Rauschert says. “He’s more than my doctor. He’s my friend. He was just grief stricken, but because of our relationship, it was easier to hear the news from him.”
Looking back on their Mayo Clinic experiences gives the Rauscherts hope for whatever adventure is next. Says Mr. Rauschert, “We know we can rely on Mayo Clinic for anything in the years to come.”
(This story comes to us from the Sharing Mayo Clinic print publication.)
