My Crozer Health Story: Tom Giancristoforo
Tom Giancristoforo
Tom Giancristoforo has placed his life in the hands of Taylor Hospital clinicians for longer than most of us will work for one employer – 40 years, to be precise. From minor surgical procedures to routine diagnostic screenings, the Essington resident has nothing but good things to say about his experiences and the hospital staff that he’s met along the way. “I’ve always received great care at Taylor,” he says. “The doctors, the nurses – I’ve gotten to know them well and build an excellent rapport.”
However, a recent cardiovascular incident really put that relationship to the test – and once again Giancristoforo’s medical team came through.
“I’ve had numerous mini-strokes over the years,” he says, “and would always go right to Taylor’s ER. But one time I woke up in the middle of the night with numbness in my right hand and face. I thought that maybe it was my sleeping position, so I waited for a few hours after I got up – but it wasn’t resolving.” So Giancristoforo went to Taylor for treatment and, suspecting a stroke, the team jumped into action and initiated a stroke alert. The diagnosis? Another transient ischemic attack (TIA), and a short stay in the hospital’s medical/surgical unit.
While Giancristoforo credits Taylor’s emergency medicine staff for their life-saving actions, he offers compliments for other Crozer Health providers who have helped to keep his chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular conditions under control. “I have congestive heart failure,” he says, “and my cardiologist, Dr. Aymen Alrez, is the best. Twenty years ago I had triple bypass surgery, and since then I’ve had a stent and pacemaker/defibrillator put in – all at Dr. Alrez’s suggestion. I also have kidney failure, and my nephrologist, Dr. Nathan Okechukwu, saved my life. I was pretty sick, and they got me back.”
Today, Giancristoforo is doing well. He enjoys trips down the shore with his family, and his job as president of the Tinicum Township Board of Commissioners – a position he’s held for 25 years.
There’s no doubt where Giancristoforo will go the next time he needs medical care. “God forbid, if anything were to happen to me I’d go to Taylor,” he says. “It’s a great community hospital.”
Taylor Hospital (c. 1910) joined the Crozer Healthin 1997. The hospital is designated as a Primary Stroke Center by The Joint Commission, and each year admits more than 7,000 patients and receives more than 28,000 Emergency Department visits. To learn more about Taylor Hospital and the Crozer Health, visit crozerkeystone.org.
