Contribution thanks Barrow for care after boating accident
In 2003, Mike DeGraffenreid and his wife, Denise, were enjoying a day on the Colorado River with friends. The sun was shining, it was hot, and Mike was anxious to cool off.
Mike dove straight off the side of the boat, head first. “I thought the water was much deeper than it was,” he said. But the water wasn’t even three feet deep. His head crashed into the bottom.
“I hit the bottom pretty hard. But I used to play football, so I was used to getting knocked around,” he said. “I thought I could just shake it off.”
Mike didn’t want to spoil the day for his wife and friends, so he decided just to relax on a raft inside the boat. “But as time passed, I started feeling weak and nauseous. It became difficult to raise my head,” he said.
Denise noticed that he didn’t look right. His eyes were glazed. Finally, they convinced Mike that he needed to go to the hospital in Lake Havasu City.
Initially, hospital staff didn’t think much of his injuries. They took X-rays of his neck. The first physician didn’t see anything wrong. But a second doctor noticed cracks in C5 and C6 of his cervical spine. Injuries of this type often leave patients quadriplegic.
The flight to Barrow
At around 11 p.m. Mike was loaded into a helicopter for a flight to Barrow Neurological Institute. “I remember them saying, ‘You’re going to one of the best neurosurgical facilities in the world. You’re going to Barrow,’” he recalled. Denise drove to Phoenix the next morning. When she arrived at the hospital, Mike was in traction. Under the leadership of neurosurgeon Peter Nakaji, MD, the team at Barrow was working to stretch the spine so the vertebrae would realign.
“I was in and out of consciousness. They would come in every hour or so to take X-rays and see if it was working, and then they’d put more weight on occasionally,” Mike said. After about 12 hours they took him into surgery.
“It was a blessing from the very beginning that the second doctor happened to be there and happened to see problem. And that I was sent to Barrow right away and that I was so lucky to have Dr. Nakaji take care of me. When I was in the hospital, my nurse would say, ‘Move your toes. You’re a miracle!’”
Mike was at Barrow for just a few days. “I only missed two weeks of work,” he said. “I defied the odds really. I’m very grateful to the staff there—I can’t explain how thankful I am.”
Throughout the entire ordeal, Mike’s mother, Kate Altman, was in Australia. “We came home to 17 messages on our answering machine,” she said. Kate and husband John left immediately for Barrow.
It was their first experience with Barrow, but not their last. In 2005, John had a botched back surgery in Ohio and had been to multiple medical centers and told he was inoperable. “But when I came to Barrow, I was told that with exercise and cortisone injections, they could make me much better,” he said.
Supporting Barrow
To thank Barrow for their son’s care, the Altmans began supporting the Barrow Resource for Acquired Injury to the Nervous System Program in 2010. The program provides comprehensive care to those who have suffered a traumatic brain or spinal-cord injury.
“Everyone at Barrow treated us like we were a friend. We never once felt that they were pushing us aside. In every case they listened, we were acknowledged – they really cared,” Kate said.
“Call it coincidence, call it anything you want. To me, it’s divine intervention. If you can be receptive to those signals in your life, it can be remarkable. ‘Thank you, God, and thank you, Barrow!’ is the best way I can say it.”
If you would like to thank Barrow Neurological Institute for the amazing care you or a loved one received, please contact Barrow Neurological Foundation at 602-406-3041. There are many ways to contribute to Barrow’s mission, and we would be glad to help you find a way that works for you. Or donate here.
