multidisciplinary team ready 24/7 to treat the Mid-South’s most critically injured patients. Having this care available promptly gives patients the best chance at surviving their injuries and returning to normal. Mark’s team, led by renowned neurosurgeon Stephanie Einhaus, MD, removed half his skull to let his brain swell. He spent over a week in a coma and on a ventilator. The days that followed are a blur. Mark had been working in St. Louis, and the view from his hospital room was so similar to the view from his hotel that he was convinced he was still there – even using a family member’s phone to try to book a flight home. There was an armoire in his hospital room, and he was certain if he went inside there would be a tunnel to the bathroom. He suffered excruciating migraines and couldn’t walk without support. He needed constant monitoring to avoid falling. Doctors told him his speech and mobility might never be the same. But he refused to give up. “I was going to get back to normal…I was going to do all the things they said I wouldn’t be able to do,” Mark said. As Mark’s strength improved, Dr. Einhaus was able to operate to return the portion of his skull that had been removed. “It was like a light switch,” Mark said. “Everything Regional One Health Foundation 11
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