Rosckes Family Story
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“I owe my life to everyone at Ridgeview. I get to be a mom to Dorothy because Ridgeview saved my life.” - Abie Rosckes
On a cold, Minnesota day in January 2019, Abie Rosckes and her husband Charlie were in the middle of a newborn photo session at their home in Delano. Feeling overjoyed with 10-day-old Dorothy, their first child, Abie didn’t think much when she noticed she was bleeding. “At first it was a small about of blood, and I figured it was normal postpartum bleeding,” she explained.
Within seconds the bleeding intensified, and Abie passed out in her bedroom. Charlie immediately called 911. “I knew she needed help right away,” he said. A Ridgeview ambulance was nearby and responded within minutes. Abie regained consciousness and remembers talking to the paramedics. “I asked them if I was going to die,” Abie recalled. “They were very reassuring and told me not to worry; they were going to help me.” Charlie held Abie’s hand as they rode to the Norman and Ann Hoffman Emergency Center on the Waconia Campus. “I was shaking,” Charlie said. “Abie was losing so much blood.” The Emergency Department team, ready and waiting to care for Abie, stepped into action as soon as she arrived. “It was clear Abie was very sick, and her condition was very serious,” said on-call obstetrician Dr. Mohling, Western OB/GYN, A Division of Ridgeview Clinics. “She was pale with a high heart rate and low blood pressure.” Using bedside ultrasound, Dr. Mohling quickly discovered Abie’s uterus still contained pieces of placenta from the recent birth of Dorothy.
After performing a relatively easy procedure to remove the remaining placenta, Abie’s bleeding still did not stop. In a time of extreme anxiety and fear, the staff at Ridgeview was reassuring and comforting for Abie’s family. “Everyone was so calm and doing everything they could to help Abie,” Charlie recalled. Dr. Mohling and the team went into the operating room and quickly identified the cause of Abie’s bleeding—a damaged blood vessel located in a precarious position in her uterus. Although they were able to stop the bleeding with a clamp, the blood vessel would not hold a permanent stich.
“In 23 years of doing obstetrics, I had never seen anything like that before,” Dr. Mohling remarked. The medical professionals were left with two options to save Abie—perform an emergency hysterectomy or transport her by air to Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis – a where staff would destroy the blood vessel. Dr. Mohling left Abie’s side for the first time in hours to talk to Charlie and the rest of her family gathered in the waiting room. Until then, Dr. Mohling hadn’t noticed the full-blown blizzard outside. Flying Abie out of Waconia was no longer an option. “I explained that we could transfer Abie to Abbott by ambulance, and I would ride along to support and hold the clamp,” Dr. Mohling said. “However, if the clamp came off, there was probably no way I would be able to get it back on and keep it on in the ambulance, which would be life-threatening.” Abie’s family quickly came to a consensus; Baby Dorothy needed her mom, and Charlie needed his wife. They directed Dr. Mohling to perform a hysterectomy. “Dr. Mohling was very confident this was going to save Abie,” Charlie explained.
When the procedure was over, Abie was in a serious, but stable condition. The next morning, Dr. Mohling visited Abie to see how she was doing. “Abie could barely talk,” Dr. Mohling said. “But she thanked me for saving her life. Abie and I will always be linked, and I will never forget her.” Abie feels extremely grateful for the entire Ridgeview team and for the care she received. “I owe my life to everyone at Ridgeview,” she said. “I get to be a mom to Dorothy because Ridgeview saved my life.”
This year, Ridgeview Foundation’s Lifeline for a Lifetime campaign will raise funds to purchase three new ambulances to deliver fast and effective emergency care to people like Abie. The new ambulances will be equipped with emergency technology, including a power load system for lifting patients, liquid suspension that allows for a smoother transport, and safety seats that enable paramedics to stay seated and buckled while administering care. When experiencing a health care emergency, you and your family deserve the most advanced technology and care.
Donate today and help Ridgeview’s paramedics, EMTs – and the ambulances they need –continue to save lives.
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Thank you for your generosity and compassion.
5 years later - 2024!
“Dorothy is now 5 and just started Kindergarten. She loves all kinds of sports and fishing. She’s flown in a personal airplane and experienced the ocean. We are just having a blast as a family.”
Mom, Abie Rosckes.
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Thank you for your generosity and compassion.
