Dr. Khami Chokani with his wife Ann-Marie, four children, granddaughter, and his parents-in-law. (Submitted Photo/Wilna Furstenberg)

By Jaryn Vecchio

Lucky To Be Alive

‘We use the word miracle’: P.A. doctor relives near-death experience and ongoing recovery

Apr 25, 2023 | 8:00 AM

A Prince Albert doctor is living his best life after almost dying more than a year ago.

Khami Chokani, P.A.’s medical officer of health, suffered an aortic dissection last March which put him in a medically induced coma for several weeks and forced him to relearn how to walk.

This is a serious condition in which a tear occurs in the inner layer of the body’s main artery which can stop blood from being sent to other parts of the body.

Chokani told paNOW he was on a call with his team at home when he was hit with severe pain in his back. It was so bad that his legs buckled, and he had to call his wife, Ann-Marie, to come and help him.

She ended up calling paramedics who insisted they take him to the Victoria Hospital after noticing his blood pressure was extremely high, despite him being able to get up and move on his own.

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He quickly underwent several tests which found a tear in his aorta. Ann-Marie still remembers how she felt when she was told just how severe Khami’s situation was.

“You kind of just float through the things happening around you.”

STARS was called to transport Khami to Saskatoon where he would undergo emergency surgery. Just before being taken to the emergency room, Khami and Ann-Marie had a chance to speak.

“He said, ‘Hello darling’ and I just said, ‘I love you.'”

Despite surviving the surgery, there was still a big chance Khami wouldn’t make it.

For the first four days, he was on the most life support a person can receive at one time. He ended up staying in a medically induced coma for around 10 weeks. During that time, he received a tracheostomy, an opening in the windpipe to help him breathe. His situation was so bad that his healthcare team held international consultations to see if there was anything they could do to better support him.

Eventually, Khami woke up. The last thing he could, and still, remembers was being helped onto a stretcher by paramedics.

His nurses were moving him out of the ICU and that’s when he noticed he couldn’t walk.

“That was the beginning of my (recovery), learning to walk and I still had all these tubes coming out of me,” he said.

Khami joked he was quite motivated to start walking again as his nurses would entice him to practice by offering ice chips.

“I was able to negotiate with my nurses for a little bit extra chips here and there,” he added.

His physical rehab in the hospital lasted three months. After being discharged, he took part in the FitLife Program at the Alfred Jenkins Field House for another 12 weeks.

He doesn’t think he would be able to walk if it weren’t for all those who took the time to help him.

He’s already gotten to the point where he can once again dance, which he was seen doing quite a bit at the Victoria Hospital Foundation’s (VHF) Doctor’s Gala this past weekend where he was presented with the MNP Award for Outstanding Achievement in Healthcare.

Now that the worst seems to be over, the family is now comfortable looking back at the situation. Ann-Marie said where they are now to where they were a year ago can best be described as a miracle.

“We do use the word miracle. There was not a lot of hope given to us, to me, when he came out of surgery and was in the ICU.”

Meanwhile, Khami wants to return to his job as P.A.’s medical officer of health, however, he has no plans to rush. He and his family are taking his recovery one month at a time.

“The nature and the intensity of his work, he has to be at the top of his game for every single minute that he’s available to others and we want to make sure there’s no part of him that he compromises to be ready to do that,” added Ann-Marie.

She also explained she’s in no rush to send him off again as the two have been spending quality time together ever since he woke up. The pair had struggled to find time together over the past couple of years since they’re both doctors working during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Those first three months of COVID he worked from home in the basement of our house, and we had two meals together,” she said.

However long it takes to recover, Khami plans on enjoying every second he gets.

“I really do believe that (God) gave me a second chance.”

—

Jaryn.Vecchio@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow