Salt Lake City, UT -- (ReleaseWire) -- 12/31/2019 --While most wake up Christmas morning eager to see what Santa brought them, 56-year-old Curt Harkins of Castleford, Idaho already knew he was getting married in his hospital room.

Harkins has been hospitalized since October with heart failure but wanted to tie the knot with his fiancé, Renee' Hall before surgery on Thursday.

Caregivers at Intermountain Medical Center helped find a district judge, got them the paperwork, made sure the doctors signed off on it, and decorated the room with Christmas garlands and flowers. Then early this morning, Hall and Harkins put on their hospital gowns and finally tied the knot.

"We had been planning to get married last year, but life ended up getting in the way," said Harkins. "I love her a lot and wanted to make sure we made it official."

Surgeons with Intermountain Medical Center's Heart Institute will be putting in a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) pump to keep Curt's heart functioning until he can receive a heart transplant.

About Intermountain Healthcare
Intermountain Healthcare is a not-for-profit system of 24 hospitals, 215 clinics, a Medical Group with 2,500 employed physicians and advanced practice clinicians, a health insurance company called SelectHealth, and other health services in Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. Intermountain is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes and sustainable costs. For more information, see intermountainhealthcare.org.