Heart disease survivor Jackie Lipscomb is back in her beloved garden again after getting the lifesaving triple bypass she needed at Methodist Mansfield Medical Center and emergency care at her hometown hospital, Methodist Midlothian.
“Both hospitals had the best, most caring staff that really made a lasting impact on me,” she says. “They didn’t just save my life — they gave me back my future.”
After mistaking an ailing heart for a nasty cold, the 68-year-old Midlothian resident says she “wouldn’t be here today” if not for the efficiency of Methodist Midlothian’s emergency department and the expertise of the heart team at Methodist Mansfield, where a triple bypass restored blood flow to her ailing heart.
“I didn’t realize how close I was to a life-threatening cardiac event,” Jackie says. “But I was in the right hands at the right time.”
NO COMMON COLD
In April 2025, Jackie’s daughter, Jessica, with whom she lives, fell ill. Jackie suffers from severe asthma, so she often catches what her daughter or grandchildren bring home.
“A couple days later, I felt unwell and went to urgent care for antibiotics and steroids, thinking I had what Jessica had,” Jackie recalls. “I felt better the next day, but soon after, the pain in my arm started.”
After the throbbing in her arm eased, so she resumed her normal routine. But another day of fatigue and lingering discomfort led Jackie to realize it was more than a cold.
“The arm discomfort, the shortness of breath, and the muscle throbbing in my chest made me think it might be my heart,” she says. “I went back to urgent care hoping for an EKG.”
An angiogram in the cath lab at Methodist Midlothian identified multiple blocked arteries.
MULTIPLE BLOCKAGES
The abnormal results of Jackie’s echocardiogram prompted an urgent care doctor to send her to Methodist Midlothian.
The emergency department quickly admitted Jackie, and her bloodwork revealed high levels of troponin, a protein released into the bloodstream when the heart muscle is damaged.
Doctors wanted more information about her heart, so Jackie was taken to the cardiac catheterization lab where they performed an angiogram, a test using X-rays and special dye injected into the bloodstream to detect blockages.
The results were dire: multiple blocked arteries. Jackie would take an ambulance to Methodist Mansfield where a surgeon could tend to her needs.
“I appreciated how quickly they acted to get me the care I needed,” Jackie says.
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OPEN-HEART SURGERY
At Methodist Mansfield, Jackie had another EKG for further diagnosis and discussed her options with Timothy Trotter, MD, cardiothoracic surgeon on the medical staff.
To restore the blood flow to her heart, Jackie opted to have an open-heart, triple coronary artery bypass graft.
“Jackie was an excellent candidate for this type of advanced heart procedure due to the number and severity of blockages,” explains Dr. Trotter. “She and I felt confident in this choice and the outcome it could offer her.”
On May 1, Dr. Trotter and his team performed open-heart surgery, replacing Jackie’s blocked coronary arteries with healthy blood vessels from other parts of her body. They used titanium plates to close her sternum, allowing for less discomfort and a quicker return to activity.
Cardiac rehabilitation got Jackie back to her garden after triple-bypass surgery at Methodist Mansfield.
REHAB AND RECOVERY
Back home to rest shortly after her surgery, Jackie credits a fast-acting emergency team and expert cardiologists for saving her life and starting her on a path to recovery she doesn’t take for granted.
“Both hospitals had the best, most caring staff that really made a lasting impact on me,” she says.
Her journey didn’t end in the operating room. As soon as she recovered enough to begin cardiac rehabilitation therapy, she committed herself fully, building strength, endurance, and confidence each step of the way.
“I told Dr. Trotter that if he got me through the surgery, I would dedicate myself to a full recovery,” Jackie says. “He did his part, now I’m doing mine.”
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