Gene Duffey, ex-Houston Post

[Armchair_QB]

Members of Texas SportsJournalists.com may remember Gene Duffey, a longtime member of the old Houston Post staff.

Gene was felled by cardiac arrest while attending a party last night. Luckily, a few of the partygoers were able to administer CPR until the EMTs arrived. It was touch-and-go at the time but he is now in ICU at a Houston hospital. Please keep him in your prayers.

 

[imjustagirl]

Wow. Good work by the partygoers, and great news for Gene, whom I don't know.

Definitely fingers crossed and hoping for the best for him.

 

[tadwriter]

Without a doubt one of the kindest and friendliest men in the press box. Hang in there and keep typing Gene. Our prayers are with you, man.

 

[Pencil Dick]

Gene's got a lot of friends in the Deep South as well from his days on the Bama beat. Hope anyone with knowledge of his condition can provide updates. Thanks.

 

[Armchair_QB]

Update:

He's been diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. Hopefully somebody on here can give us a definition of that. He did not have a heart attack but went into cardiac arrest. I did not realize there was a difference but there is.

His brain was without oxygen for a period after he collapsed so I guess, clinically, he was dead for some time before he was stablized by the EMTs.

The doctors are in the process of cooling his body to help him recover. They won't know more for a few days.

From what I understand he has no close living relatives. His parents are deceased and he did not have any brothers or sisters.

 

[Jesus_Muscatel]

Gene spent a few years in Huntsville, Ala., too.

A great guy and great writer.

Get well soon, my friend.

 

[2underpar]

here's hoping for a full recovery for gene, really a good guy.

 

[forever_town]

He's been diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. Hopefully somebody on here can give us a definition of that.

Here's what I found putting the term in a Google search:

Cardiomyopathy is a weakening of the heart muscle or a change in
heart muscle structure. It is often associated with inadequate heart
pumping or other heart function problems.

 

[Steak Snabler]

Damn. Hate to hear it. Gene was a kind, mentoring fellow to me back when I was a mere student journalist.

Thing I'll always remember about him is that, even after he'd been on the Alabama beat for a few years and everyone in the athletic department knew his name, he'd still raise his hand slightly and say "Gene Duffey, Huntsville Times" before asking a question at a press conference.

 

[GuessWho]

Duff's one of the good guys. Last time I saw him was during hoops season and he was staying pretty busy free-lancing for papers and doing stat work for radio/TV game broadcasts. Hope he pulls through. Please keep us updated.

 

[Armchair_QB]

Will do. Probably won't hear any more for a day or two.

 

[Desk_dude]

This is amazing. I just spoke to Gene late last week and he seemed fine (complaining about the decline of newspapers as usual).

 

[Armchair_QB]

Latest from a friend in Houston:

Gene has improved since Monday night. Yesterday the doctors inserted a chest tube and drained some blood and fluid out of his lungs, which has improved both his breathing and his blood pressure. He is still unconscious, which is intentional as his body recovers.

This morning the doctors have started the process of warming him up from the 92 degrees back to normal body temperature. This process takes 24 hours.

Today his blood pressure is better and the doctors have started a form of dialysis to help remove fluid from the body.

The next 24 hours are extremely important, as we will know a lot more after his body is brought back to normal temperature.

 

[BYH]

From what I understand he has no close living relatives. His parents are deceased and he did not have any brothers or sisters.

Man that is just heartbreaking.

 

[Armchair_QB]

Update from late last night:

As of Wednesday night, Gene remains in critical condition at St. Luke’s Cardiac Care Unit. The doctors started the warming process this morning and it will take approximately 24 hours to get his body temperature back to normal. He is on dialysis, which is not unusual for someone in his current condition. His blood pressure is OK.

Once the warming process is completed, the doctors will begin weaning him off the medications that have kept him in the drug-induced coma state. Once this is complete they will be able to asses his condition more fully, including neurological functions. According to the nurse, some people wake in four hours while others can take a few days. We hope to know more about his condition tomorrow afternoon.

Many people have asked what they can do to help. If you’re in Houston and are so inclined, you can go to St. Luke’s Hospital to donate blood in Gene’s name. You do not need to have the same blood type as his. The good folks at St. Luke’s can assist you with this.

I will let everyone know when he can receive visitors.

Please continue to keep Gene in your thoughts and prayers. Thanks.

 

[Armchair_QB]

Friday afternoon update from Houston:

As of 3 p.m. CDT on Friday, Gene has yet to wake up from the induced coma. As mentioned previously, it’s not unusual for patients to take a couple of days to wake up, but we all want it to be sooner than later. Also, his brain function is weaker today than it was on Wednesday.


We have asked the doctors and nurses to have nothing but sports on the TV in his room. The speaker for the TV is by his ear, and we hope that hearing games will trigger him to wake up.

Please keep Gene in your thoughts and prayers this weekend.

 

[Armchair_QB]

Just received this:

We went to St. Luke’s this afternoon to see Gene. I so wish I had better news to report, but we think it’s important that his friends know how things stand.

Gene is still in critical condition. He has not awakened from the induced coma, even though the doctors are not giving him the meds that induced the coma. The doctors also have removed the sensors that were attached to his head, presumably because there’s been no improvement with his brain activity. He is breathing with the assistance of a respirator. In other words, there is really no change, or improvement, since Friday afternoon.

As you know, Gene loves college football. Today we read to him the results of the Top 25, including the Houston Cougars’ upset of Oklahoma State (Gene covered the Cougars during his days with the Houston Post and has lots of Cougar friends) along with the results of the Syracuse-Penn State contest, which unfortunately was a loss for Gene’s alma mater at the hands of the Nittany Lions.

We want to let his friends know that visitors can visit him if you’d like. Visiting hours at St. Luke’s are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and again from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. He’s still in 6 Cooley A, Bed 8. Two visitors are allowed at a time, and no flowers or live plants can be in his area.

If you choose to come to the hospital to see Gene, please understand that he’s in critical condition. Because he is still on dialysis and the respirator, there are a number of machines in the room and tubes attached to him.

Please be assured that Gene is getting absolutely the best medical care possible. We just hope and pray that he wakes up and rallies from his current condition.

 

[GuessWho]

Damn, was hoping for better news. Thanks for the updates, though, and please keep them coming. I understand Duff has remained a close friend to retired Chron sportswriter Jerry Wizig. Do you happen to know how Jerry's doing and if he's had a chance to get up to visit Gene? Thanks.

 

[sportsguydave]

Damn, was hoping for better news. Thanks for the updates, though, and please keep them coming. I understand Duff has remained a close friend to retired Chron sportswriter Jerry Wizig. Do you happen to know how Jerry's doing and if he's had a chance to get up to visit Gene? Thanks.

Sounds like a great guy. He's in my thoughts and prayers. Here's hoping he pulls through.

 

[Bristol Insider]

Great guy. One of the best hearts in our business ... God Speed, Duff ...