Beating the Odds: How Quick Action and Expert Coordinated Care Saved One Woman's Life

Wendy Yamada loves spending time with her husband, Gerald, and two daughters, Kayla and Kaitlyn. The Hawaii Island family hikes, golfs and works out together. Wendy and Gerald savor every single moment with their daughters.

But on Jan. 19, 2023, Wendy's life – and her family's – changed in an instant.

Wendy and Kaitlyn had begun their day with a workout together at their neighborhood gym. Kaitlyn decided to leave early, while Wendy continued with her friend.

As Kaitlyn was just about to leave the parking lot, she got an urgent call.

"Her friend called me and she's like, 'You need to come back! Your mom collapsed!'" Kaitlyn remembered.

She raced back to find her mom unresponsive with people performing CPR.

"I thought, I might lose my mom," Kaitlyn said.

Wendy had gone into cardiac arrest and was rushed to the Emergency Department at Hilo Benioff Medical Center.

Gerald recalls the fear that gripped him: "When the doctors came out and told us how long she had been unconscious and that she had gone into cardiac arrest again, I knew it was really bad. I was terrified of losing her."

Wendy's condition worsened. Medical teams inserted a pump to support her heart, but it became clear that it might not be enough.

That's when Hilo doctors decided Wendy needed to be transferred to another facility for specialized care.

"I was able to reach out to one of our trusted partners, Straub Benioff Medical Center, so she could get to that center for further treatment," said Dr. Lindsey Trutter, an interventional cardiologist at Hilo Benioff.

Wendy would need to travel from Hawaii Island to Oahu. When she arrived at Straub Benioff, Wendy's condition was extremely unstable.

"She was pretty much maxed out on all of the medical therapy," said Dr. Carol Lai, a Hawaii Pacific Health Medical Group (HPHMG) cardiologist based at Straub Benioff.

The experienced Cardiology and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) teams worked tirelessly throughout the night to resuscitate Wendy and stabilize her condition.

"Essentially, whatever she needed, we could provide her," said Dr. Jeremy Lum, an HPHMG cardiac electrophysiologist based at Straub Benioff. "If she got worse, we could put her on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), which essentially does the work of the heart and lungs when they are compromised. If, and when, she needed a defibrillator, we could take care of that as well."

When Dr. Lai walked in the next morning and saw Wendy's heart function was at 50%, she knew they were out of the danger zone.

"The biggest thing after a cardiac arrest is, is the patient going to wake up?" said Stanley Nishida, RN, who works in the Straub Benioff ICU.

Wendy would eventually wake up. However, the ICU team's next concern was possible brain damage. When she was able to write Gerald's name, they knew she would be OK.

"That was the biggest relief for us, that she could communicate what she was thinking," Gerald said.

Today, Wendy is back to living her full life. She's exercising again, traveling and cherishing time with her family.

"We feel really fortunate and blessed," she said. "Every single link in my chain of survival mattered. I am proud I can go back to normal activities and have so many more years to enjoy my family."

Her daughters echo that gratitude.

"She's doing so well because of all the care she received," Kaitlyn said.

Watch the video below for Wendy’s full story and to hear more about this inspiring story of hope.

Published on: January 21, 2026