Exercise Physiologist Mitch Kline and Joanna Jackson
“On March 12, 2024, my life changed forever,” says Riverwood Healthcare Center patient Joanna Jackson of Aitkin.
Jackson, her husband, daughter, and mother-in-law were on their way from Aitkin to Texas when they made a quick stop for coffee in Plymouth just north of Minneapolis. As she reached into the back seat to buckle her daughter, an intense wave of heat rushed over her, then everything went black.
When she came to, she was vomiting, clutching her chest and arm, and overwhelmed by the worst pain she had ever felt. Moments later, she lost consciousness again.
Her husband, Mark, rushed her to the nearest emergency room at Abbott Northwestern, where doctors immediately recognized she was having a heart attack. She was quickly transferred by ambulance to Fairview Edina, where a doctor made a life-saving discovery—Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection (SCAD). Jackson’s heart had been without blood for over an hour, functioning at only 10%. Most people don’t survive this.
Jackson underwent emergency double bypass surgery, but her battle was far from over. Her body rejected the Impella pump, triggering a cardiac arrest. She was placed on life support and transferred to the University of Minnesota, where an ECMO machine kept her alive. Against all odds, after 10 days, the ECMO was removed, and she woke up on March 24—weak, unable to sit, move, or even lift her head.
The fight to recover
Determined to rebuild her strength, Jackson faced the long road to recovery. On just her second day of therapy, her therapist suggested she try walking. Encouraged by her strong faith and her husband’s words—”Your muscles just need to be reminded”—she stood up, stepped into the hallway, and walked 30 steps. It was a moment Joanna, and her doctors weren’t sure she’d achieve so quickly and the beginning of her journey back. Just 11 days later, she was discharged—a miracle.
To support her recovery, Jackson moved in with her parents where she received care from her sister, a DNP (doctor of nursing practice) and her mother, a mental health therapist. With their support, she grew stronger each day. By April 11, she was able to return home to Aitkin and continue her rehabilitation at Riverwood Healthcare Center, where she worked with Monica, an exceptional OT/PT therapist. She later transitioned to cardiac rehab with Exercise Physiologist Mitch Kline, who, by another miracle, had completed his thesis on SCAD—providing her with invaluable guidance.
Living with SCAD, raising awareness
Today, Jackson attends cardiac therapy with Kline two to three times a week. Though her heart is still severely damaged, functioning at just 28%—she remains hopeful. She recently had a defibrillator implanted and will soon begin trial study at the Mayo Clinic to see if her heart can regenerate. Ultimately, she will be placed on the heart transplant list.
Doctors believe a miscarriage in 2023 may have played a role in her SCAD attack; diagnosis is more common in women under 50 and in some cases a cause of maternal death in pregnancy. Despite ongoing research at Mayo Clinic since 2009, funding is limited—most efforts to raise money come from survivors themselves.
Early detection is critical. If a tear is caught in time, beta blockers can help prevent a full-blown heart attack. Before her SCAD heart attack—her symptoms were dismissed as high blood pressure, anxiety or heartburn, and sinus tachycardia due to lack of awareness of this type of coronary artery disease. This is why better imaging and awareness are desperately needed, especially in rural hospitals.
A mission to save lives
“I am a walking miracle, and I owe my life to God and the incredible teams at Abbott, Fairview, U of M, Mayo, and Riverwood Cardiopulmonary and OT/PT,” Jackson shares. “I want to raise awareness for SCAD and advocate for early detection technology—especially at Riverwood, where I received such amazing rehabilitation care with Monica in OT/PT and continue my recovery with Mitch in Cardiac Rehab. If we can catch SCAD early, we can save lives before it’s too late.”