The event recognized the efforts of emergency responders, clinicians, caregivers and other personnel in saving the lives of individuals who survived traumatic injuries, but it also provided an opportunity for them to visit with some of the people whom they helped to save.
Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center is a Level II trauma hospital, which can provide care for all injured patients.
The details
One of several survivors who shared their stories with attendees, Ian Sandlin, described the layers of physical, mental and emotional pain that come with trauma, which he said survivors must navigate as they work toward healing.
“There's physical aspects of my injuries, but there was some mental and emotional confusion because I wasn't completely aware of what was going on [or] what I was dealing with,” he said.
Bethany Levrier said she spent seven days in the ICU and a month in inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation to regain the ability to walk after an accident in November 2021.
"I can't thank you enough for just who you are as individuals and what you bring to the table day in and day out," Levrier said to those who helped her during and after the incident.
Mark Denham, regional director of security over the law enforcement division at the hospital, has an insider’s knowledge of certain aspects of operations of the hospital. But he said on Sept. 13, 2023, he became a hospital patient after a fall.
“My wife said I fell off the roof ... [but] the ladder collapsed underneath me; that’s a huge difference,” he said with a laugh. He described the experience as he became aware of the extent of his injuries as “the worst pain I’ve ever felt.”
Denham said he did not know who helped him because he never saw their faces.
Alexander Baas said support groups have been helpful to him as he navigates recovery from a motorcycle accident.
"This group is helping in more ways than I can mention or probably remember," Baas said. "I struggle with some memory issues, so I write things down. Some of my memory issues also involve parts of my recovery. ... Sometimes it's a great memory or sometimes it's a dark memory. But memory is very important, because it's an experience we've had and something difficult that we had to overcome or are still in the process of overcoming in life."
Quotes of note
- “We thank you for all our amazing team members in all departments that provide a unique and specialized set of required care needed for such patients,” —Denise Martin, trauma program director at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center.
- “[The event] gave me an opportunity to thank everyone. Whether they were here or not, at least I had an opportunity to publicly express from the bottom my heart how much I appreciate each and every one for helping me at my lowest time in my life. ... I was totally vulnerable and needed other people to help me.”—Mark Denham
- “It’s a blessing to have this kind of interaction. ... It’s not a common thing. ... We get followups or outcome data, but we don't really get to meet them. It’s really nice to see how our efforts and what we did make a difference.”—David Lozano, a paramedic with Montgomery County Hospital District
Materials from Memorial Hermann shared at Trauma Survivors Day included statistics on traumatic injuries:
- They are the leading cause of death for people ages 1-45.
- As many as 275,000 deaths annually can be attributed to traumatic injury in the U.S.
- One in five survivors will experience post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety or depression after their injury.
- Peer support is beneficial to trauma survivors.
