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Taryn's Story

We all know young people who won’t go anywhere without their cell phone—well, here is a story about young lady who has more than enough reason to keep two SaskTel cellphones close at hand around the clock. Taryn is 23 years old now, but when she was 15 she had a heart attack on the soccer pitch while playing in a tournament in Lethbridge. She was a provincial level player with a promising future ahead of her. Luckily, the referee was an off-duty firefighter and the manager of the other team was an ER nurse! They revived her with CPR until the paramedics arrived and they rushed her to the hospital, where she was transferred by helicopter to Calgary Children’s Hospital.  There it was discovered that she had a rare, genetic heart condition known as ARVD, arrythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia.

Testing showed that Taryn’s two brothers and mother also have this disease. They have gone from being a very active family to now having to find other ways to be involved in the community. All three children now have ICDs (internal cardiac defibrillators) implanted, which helps regulate the heart beat and provide defibrillation if it stops. Taryn has months where her heart receives almost daily shocks from the device. Over the last year, her condition progressed to a stage where she decided to pursue a heart transplant. She has been on the list now for several months, waiting for the call.

Taryn’s mom says she carries two SaskTel cell phones with her: one is her personal phone and the other a phone dedicated to the transplant office - the only people she has given this number. She keeps a packed suitcase in the trunk of her car. When that phone rings she will have perhaps an hour to get to the airport and be airlifted to Edmonton to get a new heart. Taryn needs to have this phone working 24/7. She needs it to be reliable and needs it to ring when the call comes in. She counts on SaskTel’s reliable service. 

Update: On 26 May 2010, Taryn received a heart transplant in Edmonton. After a one-week recovery, she was transferred to Calgary. She is living with friends and receiving daily checkups and physio. She was a perfect transplant patient, according to the doctors. She hopes to be in top shape by September, as she is looking forward to returning to teaching. She is no longer a girl with two phones!!!