Post by UT Medical

Dalton can tell you the exact moment it happened. At 6:42 a.m. on June 4, 2023, his phone automatically sent an SOS and called 911. Dalton was riding his motorcycle to work – in uniform with the Tennessee Air National Guard – when an oncoming driver made an unprotected left turn directly in front of him. The impact was catastrophic. Dalton coded at the scene. Nearly every rib was broken. His spleen was ruptured. His liver and kidneys were lacerated. His pelvis fractured like an “open book.” His right arm was shattered. He also sustained a severe traumatic brain injury – a Diffuse Axonal Injury – with an initial Glasgow Coma Scale score of 3, in which a 15 is fully awake and 8 or less indicates severe brain injury. The crash happened near the Blount County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies and paramedics heard the crash and reached Dalton within seconds. After being stabilized nearby, he was rushed to UT Medical Center, home to the region’s only Level I Trauma Center and Trauma Surgical ICU. “I knew that he was not expected to live,” his mother, Cindy, recalled. “One doctor said, ‘Ma’am, you don’t see anyone live through something like this.’” So she prepared herself for the worst. Within the first 11 days, Dalton underwent multiple life-saving procedures and spent 24 days on life support. “I don’t remember any of it,” Dalton said. “I was unresponsive the entire time.” But his family remembers the care they witnessed. “They never gave up,” Cindy said. “They went above and beyond every day.” After months of multiple operations and rehabilitation, Dalton began the long road back – three months in a wheelchair, learning to walk again and navigating memory challenges from his brain injury. One year to the day after relearning to walk, he ran a mile – challenged by those who told him he’d never walk again. Today, Dalton works out five days a week, journals daily to strengthen his memory and makes it a point to thank the first responders and medical professionals he meets. “I’m alive because of people like you,” he tells them. Recently, during a trip to the grocery store, a stranger complimented Dalton’s tattoos. As they talked, the man asked about the sleeve commemorating the motorcycle crash. It turned out he was the driver involved in the accident. “He started crying,” Dalton said. “He didn’t know that I lived. I told him that I held no anger, and I think it helped him. He saw that I’m alive and doing well.” Dalton and Cindy credit his survival to the rapid emergency response and the trauma, surgical and critical care teams at UT Medical Center – where advanced trauma care, innovation and compassion come together when seconds matter most. That commitment is at the heart of UT Medical’s culture – part of what makes us one of America’s Best Employers for Company Culture 2025, as recognized by Forbes, and a place where we are proud to care for you. https://lnkd.in/e7EAr566