Burn Survivor: How OU Health’s Level I Trauma Center Changed Joey’s Life

Joey Pettijohn of Blanchard, Oklahoma, expected a pleasant Saturday of treasure hunting at the annual May Daze citywide garage sales. Instead, May 18, 2024, became a day that changed her life forever but demonstrated the lifesaving capabilities of Oklahoma’s leading Level I Trauma Center.

Joey, 47, a nurse, and her husband, Dustin, were headed to town that morning in their 1970s Jeep — the body style with no top or doors — when disaster struck. As they slowed to make a turn, a distracted teenager collided with them from behind at about 70 mph on the 45-mph country road.

“There was no skid mark, no braking,” Joey said. “I remember feeling the impact, the heat from the fireball, and the sound of metal crunching.”

The collision sent the teenager’s SUV sliding underneath the couple’s Jeep, striking the gas tank. An explosion split the air, engulfing Joey and Dustin in flames.

Critical Moments

Dustin pushed Joey away from the flames, but her foot had become trapped in the burning wreckage. Her ankle was broken, but she was freed just in time. Within minutes, first responders were there. Medical helicopters took Dustin to an Oklahoma City hospital, while Joey was transported to OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center’s Level I Trauma Center.

When Joey arrived, specialists were ready to treat her severe burns. The burns on her arm were third degree, which destroys the top two layers of the skin and some of the fatty tissue underneath. The burns on her hand and wrist were fourth degree — the most severe kind. These burns go even deeper, damaging the muscles, tendons, and bones. They can be life-threatening and lead to amputation or organ failure. Surgery is almost always needed.

“For about two and a half weeks, they didn’t know if I was going to keep my left hand,” Joey said.

Comprehensive Level I Trauma Center in Action

Level I Trauma Centers provide the highest level of care for critically injured patients. This includes around-the-clock, on-site access to doctors in virtually every specialty. Within moments, the right team can be assembled to treat injuries from head to toe. One of Joey’s experts was Dr. Guilherme Barreiro, M.D., Ph.D., at OU Health, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon specializing in microvascular and complex reconstructive surgery, meaning he is skilled in reattaching tiny blood vessels to rebuild the look and function of body parts. He was instrumental in saving Joey’s hand.

“Dr. Barreiro is wonderful. He literally saved my hand,” Joey said. “He made rounds every day. He or somebody from the office checked on me daily.”

Joey had five surgeries for her burns. Dr. Barreiro meticulously removed dead tissue and later did skin grafts, using skin from her right thigh to reconstruct her left hand and arm.

Denni Wilson-Lowber, R.N., trauma burn coordinator at OU Health, visited Joey almost every day during her five-week hospital stay and remained in constant contact even after she left the hospital.

“What’s important with burns that’s different from everything else is the lifelong commitment to caring for our patients long after the physical injuries have healed,” Wilson-Lowber said. “Everything has to be remolded when you’re living with burns. The way you perceive the world changes.”

Wilson-Lowber helped manage Joey’s pain and worked with Dr. Barreiro to make sure she continued to receive consistent, coordinated care. When Joey struggled to find special compression garments near her rural home, Wilson-Lowber found a rehabilitation center that could properly fit her.

“She has been my lifesaver,” Joey said of the burn coordinator. “She keeps me going, keeps my positivity. She’ll tell me, ‘You’re doing great. We’re going to make it through this.’”

Life Transformed

Today, less than a year after that fateful morning, Joey has returned to work full time as a licensed practical nurse. She still has some limitations. She can’t make a full fist and has trouble with grip strength, but she has adapted and moved forward with her life.

“I’m back to work full time. I can do just about anything I want to do,” Joey said, adding that the traumatic experience has changed her outlook on life. “I used to be the one that didn’t want to make any ripples. ‘Can’t we all just get along?’ I was a mediator. Now I’m like, ‘Oh well, we’re going to go on with our life. Life’s too short.’”

OU Health’s Level I Trauma Center didn’t just save Joey’s hand, but restored her future and gave her a support system that continues today. As Oklahoma’s leading Level I Trauma Center, OU Health provides this kind of specialized, team-based care that can make the difference between life and death, between loss and recovery.

When seconds count and injuries are severe, this level of care matters. Joey Pettijohn knows that better than anyone.

Learn more about trauma and injury care at OU Health’s Level I Trauma Center.