Transplant patient says thanks ‘with all my old heart and new one’
Ernie Hernandez was battling congestive heart failure when he learned his liver was failing, too. On Oct. 26, he found answers to both issues with the first combined heart and liver transplant in Arizona.
Ernie Hernandez was used to the hot Arizona sun. He was born and raised in Phoenix and worked as a contractor in the masonry trade for 25 years. But the brutally hot sun one afternoon in 2018 proved to be too much for him, and he passed out.
Ernie had been battling congestive heart failure since 2015, when his cardiologist discovered that half of his heart was pumping at only 10 or 12 percent. He kept on working, even though he had been outfitted with a defibrillator to monitor his heart rhythms.
“After I passed out that day, my doctor said I was done, and I couldn’t work any longer,” Ernie says. “After 25 years in masonry, I really miss it.”
That incident led Ernie on a medical journey that not only saved his life but made him a celebrity of sorts when he became the first person in Arizona to undergo a combination heart and liver transplant on Oct. 26 at Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix.
While Ernie was battling congestive heart failure, he learned that his liver was also exhibiting problems. “I think that my heart problems damaged my liver,” he says.
As Ernie’s health declined, he was referred to Mayo Clinic in Arizona, where he underwent comprehensive testing. Transplant physicians and surgeons confirmed that Ernie would need both a heart and liver transplant at the same time.
On Oct. 5, he was placed on the United Network for Organ Sharing waiting list.
I am so grateful to my liver and heart team. I thank them with all my old heart and my new heart.
Ernie Hernandez
Ernie sees his diagnosis as a blessing.
“I wasn’t scared,” he says. “I put my faith in the hands of my Lord. I want to be around because I have two daughters. I want to see them get married and have children of their own.”
On Oct. 22, Ernie was admitted to Mayo Clinic Hospital because the battery on his defibrillator was getting low. Because of his condition, he was advised to stay in the hospital until the time when both organs that he needed would become available.
That day would come quickly: just three days later, on Sunday morning, Oct. 25.
“The whole transplant team came in to tell me that a heart and liver were waiting for me,” Ernie recalls. His wife, Liz, was already on her way to the hospital. He says “lots of hugs, kisses and prayers” took place before he was taken to the operating room.
His complex surgeries would take 12 hours to complete, making the official date of his transplants Oct. 26.
Ernie spent a few days in the ICU, where he recalls “lots of tubes” and “a long sleep.” He was discharged on Nov. 3 and now returns regularly to Mayo Clinic for follow-up appointments.
He says he feels “a lot more energized, and not in pain.”
“All is looking good,” he says. “I’m happy.” Ernie thinks about the family that made the generous decision to donate their loved one’s organs. “I am keeping them in my prayers,” he says. “May God bless them for giving me a second chance.”
Liz, who works for the city of Surprise, Arizona, and their daughter, Kiana, have served as Ernie’s caregivers. It is a role they gladly take on to ensure that Ernie takes his medications and eats healthy food.
Ernie and Liz are grateful to Mayo Clinic for the care he has received.
“I am so grateful to my liver and heart team. I thank them with all my old heart and my new heart,” Ernie says.