Emily Hammond, BSN, RN-BC, trauma research coordinator, Parkview Health, recalls how quickly her life changed, after a motor vehicle accident led to medical complications and amputation.
Life before was very active. I was dabbling in CrossFit®, working out all the time, running. I was constantly romping around with my two young boys.
The day of the accident
My older son had a zoo trip planned, and I was able to be one of the parents to go along. So, we went to the zoo and then took him back to school, went home, did some more work.
At that time, I was working for the Mirro Center for Research and Innovation in clinical trials. I dropped my older son off at reading tutoring with one of our neighbors, and then my younger son and I were going to go to pick up supplies because his birthday was the next day.
The last thing I remember is going down Union Chapel Rd. and turning onto Coldwater Rd.
Waking up
I woke up in the hospital bed. My parents and my brother had to decide if they were going to take my leg, it was that serious. It was hard for my dad to sign the consent, but when he knew it was life or limb, it had to be limb.
I had several little moments of waking up and realizing what was going on and having the breathing tube in. It felt like I was laying in the bed and there was a hole in the bed, and my knee was bent and laying in the hole.
I kept asking my brother, "What's going on with my leg?" He's like, "Emily, I've told you this before, but they had to take your leg because of the accident." And I was just like, "Where's the prosthetic? Like, let's go." But unfortunately, I had a big burn and it needed to heal. I spent three weeks in the hospital, some in the ICU and some on the ortho neurotrauma floor.
Recovery
Physical therapy did come in and help me transfer to a chair using the lift, and then occupational came in and did some massage techniques. And then, because I had four limbs that needed rehab, I couldn't go to Parkview's PT, unfortunately.
Luckily, I was able to get into Saint Anne's. It was an amazing stay there. I can remember a moment in the nursing home where they're like, "Okay, you can put pressure on your left leg now." I was like, "Okay." So, I got my walker and he's like, "Don't walk more if you start getting pain." And I just kept walking the hall.
It is tough realizing that you have to have this apparatus to move, and the part of the process with getting a leg is you go to a prosthetist, and they help score you in different areas and decide what kind of leg you should have. There's no getting in the car and trying it on and going for a ride and deciding if you like it.
And they did a great job. I love this knee that I wear. But it's a process to put this on, and it doesn't always fit perfectly because it's not a screw going into a socket. It is a leg going into a socket. It's challenging for people like me.
I'm also working with a company called So Everybody Can Move, which allows patients with prosthetics up to three prosthetic legs or limbs as medically necessary. So, you might need a shower leg, you might need a running leg, you might need a swimming leg. The goal is to help us live the best lives we can.
The takeaway
There's a reason that I'm still here. There's a reason that I did not die that day, and I think a lot of that is to help others. We have a family of problem-solvers. My grandmother was a nurse, my dad was in construction and helped build Parkview Regional Medical Center and Parkview Field, my brother's an engineer. Everything can be figured out if you just take a moment and do it.
I know that I can continue on in this life. Every day is hard. You have to make a choice. Am I going sit and pout or am I going to knock out this day? So, you put on the leg, that's a choice, that's a whole process. But once you're up and moving, you feel a lot more normal.
It's not perfect, but we're still here. We're still here to help people. I love my kids, I love my family, my friends, and it's much easier to just breathe and figure it out.
