For the last eight years, Raymond Hoppes has enjoyed retired life with his wife, Laurel. The couple has been married for 49 years and lives in Longmont, Colorado. They have four grandchildren and cherish the time they spend together. Outside of his family, Raymond’s passion is building model railroads. He’s spent a lot of time in Chama, New Mexico working on railroads and building train cars, as well as doing photography.

Recently, life changed dramatically for Raymond when he accidentally ingested a toxic substance. This led to acute hypoxemic respiratory failure and pneumonia. Unable to breathe on his own, Raymond had to be placed on a ventilator. The acute care hospital recommended a transfer to Northern Colorado Long Term Acute Hospital (NCLTAH).

Raymond and Laurel agreed and chose NCLTAH for the next stage of his recovery. NCLTAH is designated by The Joint Commission as a “Center of Excellence” for respiratory failure. The hospital’s respiratory failure specialty program proved to be exactly what Raymond needed.

“Both physicians were very caring,” Raymond said, reflecting on his experience at NCLTAH. “Paula, the physical therapist, was wonderful, and so encouraging for my recovery.”

Having made great progress, Raymond looks forward to getting back to his normal routine. He has one more stop on his journey, transferring to a rehabilitation facility to regain more of his strength before returning home.