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When Dan Hunn fell 11 feet at a home he was renovating two days before Christmas, an ambulance rushed him, unresponsive, to the nearest hospital: Barnes-Jewish Hospital.

“I didn’t even know what had happened, and then all of a sudden somebody who was helping me on the site was telling me not to move,” Dan says. “I said, ‘I have to get up and work!’ And the next thing I knew, I fell backwards.”

What Dan didn’t realize is that he was suffering from a traumatic brain injury, brain bleed, and concussion, along with several broken bones, including a broken shoulder, tail bone, and five ribs. When he woke up at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, he didn’t remember what happened and couldn’t remember his son’s name.

That first night in the ICU was especially hard for Dan — he suffered a small stroke, on top of his injuries. The medical team monitored Dan closely, taking frequent blood samples and slowly adjusting his medications to ensure he was getting enough to dissolve blood clots but not enough to worsen his brain bleed. It was an especially fine line since Dan was already on a blood thinner prior to the accident.

“Those doctors knew what to do and how to regulate him safely,” says Vicky Hunn, Dan’s wife. “That happened on Friday. I think, by Sunday or Monday, he was up walking with the walker with a physical therapist. We were just so impressed with the care he got.”

All the while, Dan just wanted to go home to see his nine grandkids, so much so that he jokingly-but-seriously promised free home renovations to anyone who could help him see his grandkids faster, including the person delivering his breakfast. He did manage to negotiate extra bacon one morning, even if not a full discharge.

A Caring Team

Dan says every person who cared for him — from nurses and doctors to the food delivery and janitorial team — made an indelible impact in his recovery, both physically and mentally. Dan recalls the care he received on one particularly hard night when his family had gone home to sleep. He became frustrated because he couldn’t hear well and had additional cognitive challenges from his injuries.

“I basically fell down crying and everything,” Dan says. “I think it was a young nurse who saw me crying and came in, and she just sat there and talked with me for probably half an hour to calm me down. And another nurse sat with me different night. I really did appreciate it because I had some rough times.”

The care team meant so much to Dan and his family that his daughter surprised him with a hard hat signed by his caregivers when they celebrated his birthday and a belated Christmas together, finally, on January 27.

Grateful To Be Alive

Dan was at Barnes-Jewish Hospital for 13 days. At his first post-accident checkup, Dan’s primary doctor was shocked to see him walk through the door as if nothing had happened, a testament to the careful planning and proactive care Dan received throughout his hospital stay. He was even able to finish renovating the home where the accident happened with help from industry friends.

“I would never go anywhere else now,” Dan says about Barnes-Jewish Hospital. “Our switch to BJC providers is a phenomenal difference no matter where we go for care.”

Dan is now semi-retired from construction, enjoying every second of life with his family. He never misses an opportunity to tell his family that he loves them — especially his grandchildren. “I’m just so blessed to be alive,” he says. “Otherwise, I would never have had my chance to see my grandkids again.”