Iliza Martinez-Mondschein of Bethlehem looks at her son, now 18 months, and sees two miracles. Frank “Frankie” Mondschein was born at St. Luke’s Anderson Campus on January 24, 2023, an IVF baby – and the first miracle. The second miracle was the blood transfusions Martinez-Mondschein received soon after giving birth that possibly saved her life.

Martinez-Mondschein had lost a lot of blood during delivery via C-section. The next day while she was recovering in her hospital room, she felt weak. “I couldn’t hold my son,” she recalls. Next thing she knew she passed out.

Bloodwork showed she had a dangerous iron deficiency and low platelet count. She needed a blood transfusion right away, and thanks to Miller-Keystone Blood Center, blood was immediately available.

Martinez-Mondschein was infused with a unit. She felt much better, but not totally recovered. The next day she was given a second unit of blood. It was what she needed to recover fully. “We were both doing fine after that,” she recalls.

Martinez-Mondschein had some symptoms of anemia when she was pregnant, but the need for a blood transfusion after her delivery was totally unexpected.

Martinez-Mondschein is ever so grateful to those who donate blood at Miller-Keystone Blood Center (MKBC). “I am so grateful and blessed,” Martinez-Mondschein said. “What should be one of the best days of your life, turned out to be a little scary, but the nurses at St Lukes went into action with the help of MKBC.”

St. Luke’s, a founding member of Miller-Keystone over 50 years ago, continues its unwavering commitment as the only local health care network that identifies MKBC as its primary blood supplier. Without St. Luke’s steadfast support for MKBC, the Lehigh Valley could run out of the blood necessary to provide lifesaving care for patients, particularly during a regional or national blood shortage or another crisis.

MKBC has locations in Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Reading, the Poconos, Pittston and Ewing, NJ, and holds blood drives at area businesses and other locations.

Martinez-Mondschein gladly tells her scary story so that it might encourage others to donate blood so the supply is there when someone else may need it. “I encourage the community to donate because you never know when you or your loved one will need a blood transfusion,” she said.

 

About St. Luke’s

Founded in 1872, St. Luke’s University Health Network (SLUHN) is a fully integrated, regional, non-profit network of more than 20,000 employees providing services at 15 campuses and 350+ outpatient sites.  With annual net revenue of $3.4 billion, the Network’s service area includes 11 counties in two states: Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Montgomery, Monroe, Schuylkill and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey. St. Luke’s hospitals operate the largest network of trauma centers in Pennsylvania, with the Bethlehem Campus being home to St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital.

Dedicated to advancing medical education, St. Luke’s is the preeminent teaching hospital in central-eastern Pennsylvania.  In partnership with Temple University, the Network established the Lehigh Valley’s first and only four-year medical school campus.  It also operates the nation’s oldest School of Nursing, established in 1884, and 52 fully accredited graduate medical educational programs with more than 500 residents and fellows. In 2022, St. Luke’s, a member of the Children’s Hospital Association, opened the Lehigh Valley’s first and only free-standing facility dedicated entirely to kids.

SLUHN is the only Lehigh Valley-based health care system to earn Medicare’s five-star ratings (the highest) for quality, efficiency and patient satisfaction.  It is both a Leapfrog Group and Healthgrades Top Hospital and a Newsweek World’s Best Hospital.  The Network’s flagship University Hospital has earned the 100 Top Major Teaching Hospital designation from Fortune/PINC AI 10 years in a row, including in 2023 when it was identified as THE #4 TEACHING HOSPITAL IN THE COUNTRY.  In 2021, St. Luke’s was identified as one of the 15 Top Health Systems nationally.  Utilizing the Epic electronic medical record (EMR) system for both inpatient and outpatient services, the Network is a multi-year recipient of the Most Wired award recognizing the breadth of the SLUHN’s information technology applications such as telehealth, online scheduling and online pricing information.  The Network is also recognized as one of the state’s lowest-cost providers.

 

Information provided to TVL by:
Sam Kennedy