Agostinho’s story
Some of Agostinho’s favourite moments were spent around the dinner table, laughing with family, playing dominos, and eating the best Caldo Verde outside of Portugal. “The simple comforts of home meant the world to him,” his daughter, Brenda, recalls with a smile.
Agostinho survived three heart attacks and suffered from advanced congestive heart failure and arrhythmia for much of his life. For years, NYGH cared for Agostinho in the Cardiac Care Clinic and when his condition was re-evaluated as palliative in 2014, Agostinho’s care was transitioned to NYGH’s Supportive Cardiology Clinic – the first program of its kind in Canada to offer specialized palliative support and services to patients with end-stage heart disease.
Working with patients and their families to educate, manage symptoms and provide access to care, the Supportive Cardiology Clinic helps patients and families avoid stressful emergency visits and reduces readmission to the hospital. For Agostinho, this meant that he could receive the care he needed at home, where he was happiest. When Agostinho passed away in 2016 at age 79, his family found comfort in the way he lived his final years.
“North York General helped make what was a really challenging time in our lives more manageable. We’re grateful that dad enjoyed his last two years at home with his family – it helped my son make wonderful memories with his grandfather that he will cherish for a lifetime.”
