Support Stacy's Journey to Pain-Free Living

My name is Amy and my neighbor, Stacy Fitzgerald needs your help…

Stacy has been a certified surgical technician in the Treasure Valley for 26 years. In 2022, she injured her hand while prepping for an orthopedic surgery. She didn’t really notice the severity at first, but the next morning she had lost all dexterity and strength in her hand. With it being the height of COVID, she continued to work at the hospital, doing what she could to help patients during the worst of the pandemic. When she was finally able to see a specialist, she found out that she had severe osteoarthritis. The bones in her hand were rubbing directly on the bones of her wrist, causing excruciating pain. She was directed not to use her hand until she underwent surgery. The initial surgery attempted to insert fat between the bones to reduce the friction; however, the surgery was unsuccessful. This last January, the pain returned causing her to lose function of her hand.

Stacy has not been able to work as a surgical technician due to her hand injury. Her injury was originally covered under workers comp until the hospital switched insurance providers, and the new provider reversed the previous coverage and denied her claims. She was not able to return to work because the hospital felt the restrictions Stacy had due to her hand injury would be a liability. So after 26 years of dedicated service, she was terminated from her job and lost her insurance coverage.

The pain in her hand has become excruciating and she needs to have an additional surgery that will attach a metal plate from her hand to her wrist to stop the bones from rubbing together. Although this will reduce the mobility of her wrist, it is the best option to reduce the pain. She has been selling her possessions and doing what she can to save enough money for the surgery, but it has been difficult. Not only has she lost a career she loved, but her mom passed away unexpectedly in May and things have been really tough for her.

The good news is that the hand surgeon is willing to work with her and has agreed to take payments for the majority of the costs of the surgery, but she needs to come up with $4000 upfront before the surgery can be scheduled. It is likely she won’t be able to regain full use of her hand and may not be able to return to the career she loved, but this surgery will help to alleviate her pain and allow her to regain some of the everyday activities she has lost. She is hopeful she can find a new career path helping others, as she did while working in health care for so many years.

Stacy has spent her life helping others and now needs our help. Please help us raise money for Stacy's surgery. Anything will help and is greatly appreciated. Thank you!