Doctors at NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi are working to help the growing number of heart failure patients in the Bronx.

Sean Crawford has been receiving treatment at the hospital after he says he developed swelling in his heart.

"I kept throwing up and I was thinking I was going to die immediately," Crawford says.

Dr. Seth Sokol says Crawford’s heart was not pumping blood well enough.

After a closer look, doctors found Crawford had a blocked artery.

The 42-year-old says luckily he caught it in time. He says there is a history of heart disease in his family, and his father passed away from a heart condition at 28 years old and more recently his brother died from a similar condition at 43 years old.

Crawford was placed on medications to improve his breathing and blood pressure, and also received a heart stent to open the blocked artery.

Since his treatment, he's lost over 50 pounds and has dramatically increased his physical activity.

NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi was awarded recently for its efforts to confront heart failure in patients.