Mother Flatlines 3 Times Due To COVID Complications

A mother flatlines three times at the hospital due to COVID-19 complications. More than 100 healthcare workers from 21 departments brought her back for another chance at life. 

It all started on New Year’s Day when Courtney tested positive for the virus. Little did she know a few weeks later she would be fighting for her life multiple times over a 9 week stay at Mercy Hospital in Oklahoma City. 

Battling COVID-19 for weeks and welcoming a new baby girl, Courtney Elliot and her family thought the worst was behind them. 

“They sent me home after five days and then two days later I was calling the ambulance to take me back. They said when i got to the er t was at 45% which should be at 90%,” she said. 

After weeks of setbacks and minor improvements, the new mother took a turn for the worse the night before she was set to be released. 

“That night there was a blood clot that went to my heart 6-8- inches. It was blocking all the blood flow to my lungs and to my heart,” she said. 

“The next day to my surprise she was on a ventilator she was intubated, she was in severe refractory shock,” said Dr. Maroun Tawk, M.D., the Mercy ICU Medical Director and Pulmonary specialist. 

Fighting against the clock her doctors took immediate action. 

“Dr. Tawk gave me a call early that morning that she was doing very very poorly…we were very very worried that she had a clot in her lung,” said Dr. Aaron Graham, an Interventional Radiologist at Mercy. 

“I crossed my fingers and thought, ‘the clot can be retrieved, and we can save the day.’ I remember I talked to her family, and I said ‘either she is going to fly or she is going to die’,” said Dr. Tawk.  

“This is the only case where the heart was still going when I got her on the table and then I took a picture and it stopped,” said Dr. Graham. 

Courtney's heart would stop two more times from collapsed lungs. 

“Even in very young patients when you know have a lot of reserve there is still only so much they can take,” said Dr. Graham. 

“Every time she surprised me by coming back and she recovered from those events miraculously in a way,” said Dr. Tawk. 

She said it was a conversation with God that kept her going when all the odds were against her. 

“I just had a conversation with him saying ‘I’m not done yet. I have a three-year-old, I have a little tiny baby that I need to see grow up I need to raise’,” she said. 

“Maybe it is a combination of both…if you put all these together it looks like God did his miracle through us, sure,” said Dr. Tawk.