Emergency Surgery Can't Keep Dad From Daughter's Wedding

For a father, it is a moment he will never forget — let alone never want to miss. Like the day she was born, walking your daughter down the aisle is one of the most important moments in life. It’s a moment Tim Mosher almost missed.

“I was thinking he was not going to be there,” said DeAnna Streu, Tim Mosher’s daughter. “I went up to Trinity Health Saint Mary’s and I saw him right after surgery on Sunday and he was like, ‘Oh I didn’t think I would see you before your wedding.’ I was getting married on Monday, the very next day, and we had set it up where he would Facetime us and be able to watch since we thought he’d have to stay in the hospital.”

For Streu, it was an emotional time. The pressure of finalizing everything for her wedding — and now thinking her dad wouldn’t be there to walk her down the aisle because he was in for emergency surgery — it was all a lot to bear.

“It was very stressful,” said Streu. “That Thursday before, it was about noon, and he asked if I could take him to the hospital. I was anxious — he wasn’t feeling well, he was in sepsis, and then had to have a toe amputated. It was extra stressful too because my two older brothers’ mom died of sepsis, so it brought out some PTSD for us because we watched her pass away.”

Mosher, a former Marine and type 2 diabetic, admits he let his diabetes get the best of him. He works long hours on his feet as a security guard. He skipped his medications and wasn’t watching his sugar. His wife noticed his toe turning black — which later led to its amputation.

“It’s a big deal because of my stupidity. It was completely my fault,” said Mosher. “If I had done what I was supposed to be doing it would have been better, and I would not have ended up in the hospital or lost my toe. The nurses put me on antibiotics and got my sugar numbers down. I told them I wanted to be able to get out of the hospital by Monday so I could attend my daughter’s wedding, but I didn’t know if that would happen.”

“My dad does not cry often. I’ve only ever seen him cry twice,” said Streu. “He called me crying. It was very hard to hear him that emotional – being that he is a Marine, he’s a tough guy.”

Mosher’s health care team at Trinity Health Saint Mary’s knew his story and wanted to do everything they could to safely get him to his daughter’s wedding — just a few miles down the road at John Ball Zoo.

“It was almost noon, and the wedding was in the early afternoon. Dr. Thenn quickly came up to the room and we placed the patient’s foot in a walking boot,” said Nate VanderPloeg, RN, Trinity Health Saint Mary’s. “As Dr. Thenn was changing the dressing, I was messaging the physical therapist to come and see the patient as soon as possible to evaluate him. At this time, I sent the patients son home to get some clothes for the patient to wear at the wedding.”

“Nate said to me, ‘He is going to end up back here in a few days if we rush him out the door, and that’s not good for anyone,” said Beth Triezenberg, RN, Clinical Nurse Leader at Trinity Health Saint Mary’s. “Patient safety is always our priority. We knew the patient wasn’t ready to be discharged, but I spoke with the attending physician, Dr. Nasir Khan, who agreed to put an LOA in place.”

An LOA — or leave of absence — is in place for special circumstances, just like Mosher’s. An LOA must be ordered by a physician. Patients must sign a Release of Responsibility and Liability for Temporary Leave of Absence releasing the hospital of all responsibility before leaving on a temporary leave of absence. Examples of appropriate reasons for LOA include significant family events (i.e., funerals, marriages, graduations, etc.). Patients are thoroughly evaluated and will not be released if their health is at risk.

“I was lying in bed, and they said, ‘Let’s see what you can do with therapy’ because we want to get you out of here so you can be at your daughter’s wedding,” said Mosher.

While he couldn’t physically walk Streu down the aisle because he was could not bear weight on his foot, Mosher happily participated from a wheelchair.

“The wedding was really nice and it was nice that the doctors and nurses did what they did to make it possible for me to go. I will always appreciate that. They took good care of me,” said Mosher. “My daughter was really happy to have me there. It was emotional — when I saw my daughter in her wedding dress. Everyone was crying. Maybe I did a little too.”

“We even got to do our first dance,” said Streu. “He cried the entire dance. I was all out of tears because I had cried the entire week before with him in the hospital. I was just so happy to have my dad there.”