From Walk-In to Recovery: Nate Cohen’s Unexpected Day

Local business leader Nate Cohen, chief financial officer of Cohen Architectural Woodworking, never imagined that a casual clinic visit would lead him to the emergency department, into surgery and back home to recover — all in one day.

On Labor Day evening, Nate developed severe pain in his lower right side. At first, he thought it must have been something he’d eaten, or perhaps a virus. After a restless, feverish night, he was exhausted, but pain-free. Nate took it easy the next day, but a family member convinced him he should see a doctor.

Certain that he was overreacting, Nate went to the Phelps Health Walk-In Clinic in Rolla the following morning. The nurse who examined him immediately suspected that his appendix was the problem and notified the Phelps Health Emergency Department (ED) that Nate was on the way. Even though the pain was gone, the ED confirmed that his appendix had to come out.

Nate was scheduled for a laparoscopic appendectomy at 5:00 PM that same evening. This minimally invasive procedure, which uses small incisions and a thin camera-equipped tube called a laparoscope, is designed to reduce pain and speed up recovery compared to traditional surgery.

While waiting, Nate’s mind raced in a whirlwind of uncertainty. Enter Dana Voight, MD, the general surgeon at Phelps Health who would perform the surgery.

“Dr. Voight had a quick conversation with me, and in 30 seconds, he calmed me down,” Nate remembered. “It was little moments like that, scattered throughout the day, that helped make it such a great experience.

“The staff was the best,” he remarked. “One nurse, Abby, was extremely patient when I had a hard time waking up from the anesthesia. She brought me a sandwich and even wheeled me out to the car when it was time to go.”

Nate recovered quickly. “The pain from the surgery was minimal,” he said. “After 4 or 5 days, I was in great shape.”

“It wasn't how I planned on spending the day, but the experience was seamless from top to bottom,” Nate said. “One of the best parts was not having a long car ride after surgery. I was 5 minutes from home. That meant a lot to me.”

However, this quality of care hasn’t always been his experience. Nate recalled a past surgery at a different hospital.

“The nurse was rushing me out of the recovery room while I was still trying to wake up,” he said. “Then, I had to sit in the car for an hour and a half to get home. It was tough.”

“I’m so glad that I picked Phelps Health,” he continued. “My primary care doctor, Mylhan Myers, DO, sent me a message after surgery letting me know he was there if I needed anything.”

Nate values feeling like an active participant in his healthcare decisions. “Even though healthcare isn’t my area of expertise, my doctors listen to what I have to say and take it into consideration. And they’re practical, they use language that I can understand and offer guidance I can act on.”

Nate is also a fan of the MyChart  patient portal and consistently uses the app. “It's easy to navigate, and lab results are easy to understand.”

“I would absolutely recommend Phelps Health,” Nate said. “I'm not old, but as I'm getting older, having quality healthcare has become more important to me. I’ve lived in the Rolla area for 20 years, and I love seeing all the new services that have been added. It's remarkable to have such good healthcare right in our backyard.”