Baystate Medical Center Celebrates Special Code Rocky

SPRINGFIELD — Members of the Baystate Health family gathered for a heartfelt show of love to medical assistant Meghan Moomjian with a special Grand Code Rocky as she left the hospital for home after spending 29 days in the hospital, including in the Critical Care unit, fighting for her life after contracting COVID-19.

Code Rocky began on one of Baystate Medical Center’s care units as a way for caregivers to recognize and celebrate the recovery and discharge of a COVID-19 patient — along with cheers and the theme song from the movie Rocky playing in the background.

With the patient’s consent, a Code Rocky mobilizes Baystate Medical Center team members throughout the hospital to gather in the Daly Lobby — dressed in their personal protective equipment, from masks to gowns — to provide a standing ovation and a warm sendoff for the patient and to acknowledge the care team while the Rocky theme song is played.

Nancy Shendell-Falik, president of Baystate Medical Center and senior vice president of hospital operations for Baystate Health, was one of the many team members who gathered in the hospital’s Daly Lobby for the joyous occasion for Moomjian.

“Team members gave a standing ovation for one of our own as a very special Grand Code Rocky was called to celebrate the recovery of Meghan Moomjian, who is a medical assistant at the hospital,” Shendell-Falik said. “It was a spectacular sight filled with loud cheers and tears of joy from everyone in honor of Meghan and the incredible effort that our staff puts in every day in caring for our many patients.”

An exhausted Moomjian, who is a medical assistant in Baystate Thoracic Surgery, said she is “doing great — if only I could just sleep for about a month now,” maintaining a sense of humor amid the life-threating ordeal she had endured. “This has just been a terrible situation … I have been able to FaceTime my husband, but I’m missing everyone.”

When learning that she was going to have a big sendoff, Moomjian humbly responded: “you all don’t even know me. It’s hard for me to put into words right now the care I have received.”

Click here to watch a video of Moonjian’s Code Rocky sendoff.