Mark’s Story

“After receiving critical cardiac care at Asante, Gwen and I were inspired to make a meaningful gift to honor the providers who extended my life. We wanted to express our gratitude in a way that would have a most meaningful impact on our community, by giving to Asante’s cardiac expansion.”

– Mark Schiveley

Grateful for local cardiac care

Mark has always been physically active, and when he retired from the bench of the Oregon Circuit Court he started enjoying a lot of activity—golfing, hiking, cycling, skiing, racquetball—and he tried having fun while doing it. Then, in the summer of 2021, Mark had a tachycardia attack—an abnormally fast heart rate, which he’d experienced before but not in quite some time. He was referred to Dr. Brian Gross at Southern Oregon Cardiology who identified some underlying conditions, but nothing that was too alarming.

However, about a year later, some additional testing resulted in the discovery of an artery that was 99% closed and requiring a stent. Mark underwent a minimally invasive transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in the cath labs at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center. But about six months later, an angiogram revealed that open heart surgery was becoming necessary to fix the valves in Mark’s heart.

“In the process of researching my best option for surgery—and whether I should go to one of the famous centers like Cleveland Clinic or Johns Hopkins—I discovered that we’ve got one of the very best heart programs in the entire country right here at Rogue Regional. And not only the doctors, but the quality of nurses in the Cardiovascular Critical Care Unit (CVICU) are among the very best!”

Mark received his open-heart surgery at Rogue Regional led by Dr. Carmeci. His recovery was going well, but he was eager to return to his activities and the gym. At first he was reluctant to use the cardiac rehab program, since he has always been active and knows how to work out. But he quickly realized that he was facing a whole other level of recovery, so he pursued the option of enrolling in Asante’s cardiac rehab.

“I really view cardiac rehab as the bridge between major surgery and the rest of my life.”

While in recovery, Mark heard about an opportunity to tour the new patient pavilion before it opened. He was so thoroughly impressed, he decided to go on another tour, this time to the cath lab and the proposed cardiac expansion.

“It wasn’t too long after attending the tour that I started thinking this is a way for me to show my gratitude for how much everybody has helped me regain my health and help future people who may be facing these issues. So, Gwen and I made a gift in honor of Southern Oregon Cardiology, Dr. Brian Gross and my friend Dr. Minor Matthews, the retired cardiologist who started the heart program at Rogue Regional back in the 70s.”

Mark felt so inspired by the care he received, the direction of the cardiac program at Rogue Regional, and the impact of gifts like his on the future of health care in our region that he also made the commitment to join the Asante Foundation’s board of directors.

“I was thankful that I didn’t have to face open heart surgery as an emergency, and my story is a testament to seeing your doctor regularly. Not everyone’s journey with health care is catastrophic or a point of crisis. Sometimes it just comes down to diligent, quality providers who are paying attention, caring for you and making sure that you’re getting what you need at the time that you need it.” –Mark Schiveley, grateful patient and donor

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