Business Coach Takes Note of Amazing Culture That Saved His Life Twice

Award-winning business coach Rick Franzo woke up that Sunday in September with stomach pain, was doubled over in the emergency room by 5 p.m., and lay on an operating table at midnight. Yet during a time of acute stress, Franzo found comfort in the medical team at St. Luke’s University Health Network. It wasn’t the first time.

“This was the second time St. Luke’s saved my life,” Franzo said.

Franzo, a 59-year-old resident of Monroe County, has a long history with St. Luke’s. He lives with brain tumors and, in 2009, underwent surgery at St. Luke’s Bethlehem Campus to remove a large, non-cancerous mass. In September, Franzo turned to St. Luke’s Monroe Campus for another life-saving procedure. 

Franzo had a critical surgery to repair a stomach perforation, caused by diverticulitis, which sent him into septic shock. Barely seven hours after Franzo was admitted, Dr. Gerardo Garcia performed the surgery at St. Luke’s Monroe Campus. After five days in the hospital, Franzo went home to continue his recovery. 

“I felt very well taken care of,” he said. “Everybody was just so engaged in the patient experience. I’ve been in the hospital for some major things, and this was a great experience.”

Franzo was wowed by the culture he encountered at St. Luke’s Monroe Campus, which happens to be his area of expertise. Franzo, a business coach in the Poconos who helps companies build smarter, more effective teams. “Culture” is a keyword in his profession, and he called the culture at St. Luke’s “amazing.”

Franzo said he encountered a team of doctors, nurses, and support staff driven to help. He met medical students who thoughtfully engaged in his treatment. And he praised Dr. Garcia, his surgeon, for his empathetic approach to the procedure.

“The culture there was absolutely second to none,” Franzo said. “I spoke to some of my larger clients about it. I told them, ‘This is what every company should aspire to.’ Whether it was day shift, night shift, whoever, everybody was pleasant, respectful, and responsive. I can sum it up like this: Everybody really gave a damn.”

Franzo requires significant follow-up care, including a second surgery in December. Dr. Garcia assured Franzo that he would perform the procedure at St. Luke’s Monroe Campus. Franzo appreciated “the care close to home.”

“They made me very comfortable in a very uncomfortable situation,” he said. “They saved my life. Again.”