Anthony Johansen: Donor and volunteer gives back to the hospital that saved his life

In the summer of 1999, Anthony Johansen began experiencing a strange eye problem. A dark shadow would float over his left eye and then clear away again.

Tests confirmed that he had a serious problem—the carotid artery on the left side of his neck was 90 to 95 per cent blocked. The shadows in his eye were caused by transient ischemic attacks, or mini-strokes, that occur when the blood supply to part of the brain is briefly interrupted. The blockage was a ticking time bomb toward a potentially deadly stroke.

Anthony was referred to Dr. George Hajjar, a top vascular surgeon at The Ottawa Hospital’s Civic Campus. “He was so friendly and genuine; I immediately felt comfortable with him,” recalls Anthony.

Nine days later, he was in the operating room. “You could really tell that the staff was confident in their skills and that they trusted each other implicitly. I really felt that I was in the best of hands.” Anthony will be forever grateful to Dr. Hajjar and his staff for their incredible care and, most importantly, for saving his life.

A couple of years later, Anthony experienced another side effect of the blood clot. During his many visits to the Hospital in that period, Anthony was parking in the driveway of a friend who lived close to the Civic Campus. He ended up falling in love with her and they got married—giving this story a fairy-tale happy ending.

Anthony and Joy are President’s Council members, as well as Table Captain volunteers for the Foundation’s President’s Breakfast. To find out more about the President’s Council, contact Sharon Martin at 613-798-5555, ext. 19084.