Chad Babin’s journey to recovery after a heart attack On April 16, 2024, Chad Babin began his day like any other. He woke up at 4 a.m., made coffee, took a moment for reading and reflection, and headed off to the gym for a 5 a.m. workout. He walked into the gym, greeted several friends and headed into an empty aerobics room, where he sat on the rowing machine and began his workout. That was the last thing he remembered before waking up in the intensive care unit later that day. A short time after beginning his workout, Chad’s friends found him lying on the ground with no pulse and immediately began chest compressions. The friends’ efforts, along with an automated external defibrillator (AED) in the gym, kept Chad alive until EMS and his wife, Candi, could arrive to transport him to the hospital. It was there he learned he had two blockages in his heart and would require open heart surgery—hopefully sooner, rather than later. Chad was a healthy 44-year-old with an active lifestyle. Although heart disease ran in his family, he had little reason to believe that anything like this would happen to him. Apart from occasional shortness of breath, Chad assumed his heart health was nothing to worry about. Exploring his options Once he was home from the hospital with his family and reassured by the presence of a cardiac LifeVest, as a temporary safeguard against another heart attack, Chad and Candi began exploring permanent treatment options for Chad’s heart. “We were talking about getting an opinion from a surgeon in Houston when we got a text to go see Dr. Lugo at Memorial,” Chad recalls. Determined to explore all options, Chad consulted with Gregory Lugo, MD, at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital. During their first meeting, Dr. Lugo immediately recognized the urgency of his condition. With clear communication, ‘I’ve been given “I don’t know how much time I have left, but I’ve been given a second chance—and I’m committed to making the most of it.” —Chad Babin a second chance’ 12 Memorial Medical Milestones • 2025 Issue 1
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