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Valley doctor working to recover after fall over the holidays

Dr. Grayson Guzman fell in December while his family believes he was fixing Christmas lights, he's still in the hospital more than a month later.

PHOENIX — A Valley doctor who's helped patients for 20 years is the one now being treated.

Dr. Grayson Guzman has been hospitalized for a month after taking a fall during the holidays.

Kara Guzman, his wife, said he wanted to fix some Christmas lights that had fallen at their home before a party they planned to host in December.

"We think he fell off the roof," Kara Guzman said. "Nobody was there with him."

Kara Guzman said her husband was able to get back inside the house and was in surgery only a couple of hours later at Chandler Regional Medical Center.

Grayson Guzman ended up having another surgery and spent a couple of weeks in the ICU at Chandler. He's now working on recovery at Barrow Neurological Institute's Neuro-Rehabilitation.

"He's working really hard every day. He has therapies all day long, and the therapists there are just incredible," Kara Guzman said.

The couple has been married for 20 years and have four kids together.

“He’s a fun dad, a fun physician,” Kara Guzman said.

Grayson Guzman has worked as an OB-GYN for 20 years and supports his family of six on his income, as Kara Guzman is a stay-at-home mom.

“He just doesn’t seem to run out of energy. He works long days and takes calls and things, but when he comes home, he always has the energy and time to hang with the kids or play with the kids,” Kara Guzman said.

What’s helped Kara Guzman during this time, which she describes as a nightmare, is support from people around the family.

“Patients have reached out, and staff from the hospital and friends,” Kara Guzman said.

Right now, her husband, who has helped patients for years, is the one needing help.

“Sometimes we’ll encounter people, and they’ll truly say, ‘He saved my life’, whether they hemorrhage during a birth or whatever else, they are so thankful for him…but like being on this side of that, I see what an impact he probably had on other people’s lives,” Kara Guzman said. “Because I feel the same about the surgeon who did his surgery, who – truthfully- saved his life.”

Kara Guzman said they have high deductible health insurance and are unclear on what medical expenses will look like as her husband continues to recover or if he'll be able to go back to work.

"We just don't know what the future holds," Kara Guzman said.

The family has started a GoFundMe to help with medical expenses as the bills come in for Grayson Guzman's treatment and recovery.

In the meantime, Kara Guzman says she’s looking forward to his presence coming back to their home in time.

“To see him be able to speak and see his personality coming back is really promising,” Kara Guzman said. “Because if nothing else, the possibility of having him home with us and having him be the person that he was prior to the accident is kind of the best thing we could ask for.”

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