Alcor’s Arizona response team provided standby services twice at the home of A-2357 on the west side of the Phoenix valley, approximately 50 miles from Alcor in Scottsdale. The first standby lasted six days before the member’s condition improved enough for the team to stand down. While continuing to monitor the individual’s health through a very supportive hospice organization, the attending physician determined that it was time to restart the standby just a mere two weeks later. On the second day of the standby, despite relatively strong vital signs, the member’s breathing became weaker until he finally just ceased to take a breath. The patient was pronounced on June 17, 2011.

At the prior request of the hospice physician, both she and a hospice nurse assisted Aaron Drake and Steve Graber in administering the medications, cooling and preparing the patient for transport. They both followed the rescue vehicle back to Alcor so they could observe the procedure and see the facilities. Being impressed with the overall process, the physician expressed the desire to provide services for future Alcor members. This new relationship, along with the existing hospice that we have used in the past, will provide us with a stronger network of hospice options in the greater Phoenix area. A-2357 is now Alcor’s 106th patient, being cared for as a neurocryopreservation patient.