Four Years and Counting

“At the hospital they told me COVID would disable me for life. It’s because of the tremendous support from my wife, Dr. Khoury, and the AltaMed Paramount clinic that I’m 90% back to my original health and no longer need to live with an oxygen mask,” says AltaMed patient Alberto.

When Alberto left the hospital after spending 40 days battling COVID in the ICU, his life had completely changed. At 42, he’d previously spent little time in a doctor’s office, now, he was going home with an oxygen tank and a wheelchair.

A week after his discharge from the hospital, he went to his first appointment with family physician Maribel Khoury, M.D. at the AltaMed Paramount clinic. From the start, Alberto felt like he had found a friend with his new doctor.

 “She told me, ‘I am going to get you through this,’” says Alberto. “She reassured me that she would be there to support me with anything I needed during my recovery.”

Dr. Khoury immediately prescribed medication to help treat his pneumonia and connected him with all the specialty care he needed, like a physical therapist, neurologist, and cardiologist. When Alberto wasn’t seeing improvement with his medication, Dr. Khoury and her team efficiently switched him to a different one that would help him recover. Because of the timely care he received, Alberto also avoided invasive treatment for the blood clots in his legs—removing an additional stressor that would affect his recovery.

“I didn’t have to be on the phone making appointments since Dr. Khoury was making them on my behalf while ensuring I got them as soon as possible,” adds Alberto.