{"id":7717,"date":"2017-01-25T16:32:12","date_gmt":"2017-01-25T23:32:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=7717"},"modified":"2021-07-19T11:42:11","modified_gmt":"2021-07-19T17:42:11","slug":"woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Woman run over by van walks again"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>
\"Head
Karen Johnson, a commercial realtor and health care writer, was severely injured in a motorcycle accident. Physicians at UCHealth Memorial Hospital put her back together again.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On a cool day in early June, Karen Johnson and her brother, Steven, had set out on a motorcycle trip to Montrose to visit some relatives. They were near Buena Vista when out of the blue, Karen\u2019s motorcycle wobbled.<\/p>\n

In a blink, Karen\u2019s motorcycle shot into the oncoming lane of traffic and a van struck her petite 5-foot-4 frame. On the side of U.S. Highway 285, Karen lay conscious \u2013 but crumpled in a pile of broken bones.<\/p>\n

An off-duty doctor and nurse who happened to be in the area and a bevy of paramedics and firefighters offered assistance. Communicating with her eyes closed, Karen did not know then how badly she was bleeding or how broken she was. Afraid, she lay as still as possible.<\/p>\n

Steven, who had been riding ahead, circled back and joined the caregivers on the side of the road. He placed his jacket over his sister to keep her warm and offered encouragement.<\/p>\n

Like most people, Karen never anticipated that the unexpected would happen to her, and the experience has changed her and prompted her to begin a new endeavor that helps people prepare for life\u2019s transitions \u2013 and the unexpected.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew a lot of people were comforting me \u2013 a lot of personnel,\u2019\u2019 Karen said. \u201cFrom conversations overheard, I also knew the clock was ticking for the air ambulance to show up. By the time they loaded me onto the helicopter, I was out.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Despite gusty winds, the helicopter lifted off with no trouble, but the flight to Denver was quickly diverted because of a tornado warning in the Mile High City. The helicopter turned south to Colorado Springs and by the time Karen arrived at UCHealth Memorial Hospital, her pulse, breathing and blood pressure were in rapid decline.<\/p>\n

Expert trauma care<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Memorial\u2019s trauma team, led that day by Dr. Paul Reckard<\/a>, was standing at the ready, as they do for patients who suffer serious, traumatic injuries. With her breathing in jeopardy, Dr. Reckard\u2019s team placed a flexible plastic tube into Karen\u2019s trachea to maintain an open airway. She received multiple blood transfusions.<\/p>\n

Karen arrived with an open pelvic fracture<\/a> \u2013 and injury that many of the caregivers at Memorial had never seen. A broken pelvic bone protruded through her private area. It\u2019s the kind of injury that requires special physician expertise. In this case the help came from Dr. Peter Fredericks<\/a>, southern Colorado\u2019s only board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic trauma surgeon.<\/p>\n

\"An
Dr. Peter Fredericks, southern Colorado\u0092’s only board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic trauma surgeon, performed surgeries on Karen Johnson\u0092s pelvis, rebuilding it with three plates and 20 screws.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe textbook says that a person with an injury like that has a 50-50 chance of survival. It\u2019s the first time I had ever seen an injury like that, and some physicians go a whole career without seeing this kind of injury,\u2019\u2019 said Dr. Fredericks. In addition, Karen had multiple fractures to her right femur and an open fracture of her left ankle \u2013 both serious enough injuries on their own.<\/p>\n

For the next six days, Karen, a 54-year-old commercial realtor and a health care business owner, would lie unconscious through multiple surgeries, including three that spanned 17 hours, aimed at putting her back together.<\/p>\n

In the early minutes after her arrival at Memorial, Dr. Reckard\u2019s team stabilized Karen\u2019s breathing sufficiently for Dr. Mindy Siegel, a well-known Colorado Springs orthopedic surgeon, to perform surgery to begin repairing the shattered femur, ankle and pelvis. Dr. Siegel attached three separate external fixators \u2013 devices that look like erector sets that rest on the outside of the body \u2013 to immobilize each of them.<\/p>\n

Karen was in the intensive care unit, where she had individualized care from expert nurses who checked on her multiple times each hour. After a couple of days, Karen was strong enough to endure the first of three surgeries Dr. Fredericks performed in hopes of enabling Karen to walk again.<\/p>\n

To walk again?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

During the first surgery, Dr. Fredericks fixed the right femur and removed the fixator attached to her leg. He also fixed the left ankle and adjusted its fixator, revised the external fixator on the pelvis, and cleaned out the wound from the pelvic fracture.<\/p>\n

During the second surgery, Dr. Fredericks worked with Dr. Peter Liehr, an OB\/Gyn physician who closed the open wound on Karen\u2019s front side. Dr. Fredericks also placed long internal screws \u2013 one 6.5-inches long and two about 3 inches long each \u2013 to repair the back side of the pelvis.<\/p>\n

During the third surgery, Dr. Fredericks worked with more hardware to repair injuries to the front part of her pelvis.<\/p>\n

By the time all the surgeries were done, Karen had three plates and 20 screws in her pelvis alone. She had a rod in her right femur and hardware in her left ankle. But her wounds were all closed. \u201cThere was quite a bit of work done in that first week,\u2019\u2019 said Dr. Fredericks. \u201cHer pelvis was broken every which way.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

After the surgeries, doctors met with Steven, who practically lived at the hospital during those first days. \u201cEveryone on staff was great,\u201d he said. “They were very open to any questions, concerns, whatever. They handled every question professionally, and answered it without any pause.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Still, Karen\u2019s family and friends were scurrying about trying to figure out passwords to her accounts, what needed to be done at her Castle Pines home and who to contact for other needs. All of this gave Karen an inspiration for a new endeavor that she would later decide to launch.<\/p>\n

\"A
Clinicians began to refer to Karen Johnson as “the computer lady” because she got back to work from her hospital room.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Six days after the accident, Karen regained consciousness. \u201cRight away she was highly motivated, there\u2019s no doubt about that,\u2019\u2019 Dr. Fredericks said. \u201cOnce they got the breathing tube out of her, she was back at work on her laptop doing her work from her ICU bed \u2013 that\u2019s kind of unheard of.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Doctors and nurses were overjoyed to see that Karen had emerged with her spirit \u2013 and her desire to get back home and back to work \u2013 fully intact. \u00a0With her computers set up close by, she was back to emailing and corresponding with her clients. The staff at Memorial began to refer to her affectionately as \u201cthe computer lady.\u201d<\/p>\n

In time, she moved out of the ICU to a medical floor at Memorial and then to the hospital\u2019s inpatient rehabilitation unit. Karen\u2019s journey at Memorial is documented in 25 pages of narrative in her medical record \u2013 words dictated by Reckard, Siegel, Fredericks and Dr. Marc Kelly, a physician in the rehabilitation unit at Memorial. The goal in the inpatient rehab unit was to get the patient to a \u201cmodified wheelchair level for discharge to a home setting.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Working through rehabilitation to walk again<\/strong><\/h3>\n

After six weeks at Memorial, Johnson went to a rehabilitation center in Lone Tree, closer to her home. She still had the fixators around her ankle and her pelvic area.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to learn some new techniques from a wheelchair, such as how to transfer, pick up items, shower, get clothes on, etc.,\u2019\u2019 she said. Every day, she worked to become more equipped to handle everyday activities.<\/p>\n

One day, while in the rehab center, a caregiver accompanied her to her house in Castle Pines to do a pre-home evaluation. \u201cFrom the minute I pulled in the garage, all I could do was cry because at least I got back there \u2013 maybe not in the same condition as when I left, but I got back,\u2019\u2019 Karen said. She was more determined than ever to get back home.<\/p>\n

After two months, Dr. Fredericks removed the \u201cerector sets\u2019\u2019 from Karen\u2019s ankle and pelvis. Dr. Fredericks still instructed her to be non-weight bearing. At three months, it was time for Dr. Fredericks to see Karen again \u2013 this time, to see if she could walk. When she stood up and started walking again, tears filled both Karen\u2019s and Dr. Fredericks\u2019 eyes.<\/p>\n

On a follow-up visit a couple of weeks later, Karen walked pretty well through Dr. Fredericks\u2019 office at Printers Park Medical Plaza in Colorado Springs. The progress was nothing short of remarkable.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsidering that, at first, it was believed that I probably wouldn\u2019t walk for at least a year and half, and that I was walking without a walker at four months, Dr. Fredericks wanted to videotape me walking because he couldn\u2019t wait to show the trauma team that took such good care of me the afternoon I came in, what progress I had made since the accident,\u2019\u2019 Karen said. Even his assistant chimed in, \u201cWe have never seen him videotape anyone else before.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Fredericks said the care provided to Karen by the teams at Memorial is a highlight in his career.<\/p>\n

Coming to the right place<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cShe got to the right place,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cI\u2019m not saying that it would have been different had she gone to Denver, but this was the right place at the right time. She had the right people taking care of her all along the way, from the trauma team to surgery, to the ICU, to rehabilitation \u2013 everything went right.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great because she is such a great person, and it is such a great story because she was so banged up. And the way this could have gone,\u2019\u2019 he said, his voice trailing. \u201cIt was miraculous.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Karen still has a slight limp and some issues with her bladder but, otherwise, she\u2019s doing fairly well. She is working hard on a new venture, the University of Transition, an online forum with education and resources for those going through life\u2019s changes. These include organizing, supporting and helping families prepare for situations and events that come along in life \u2013 such as an unexpected medical emergency \u2013 all the way through end-of-life planning.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomeday we are going to have our own football team at the University of Transition \u2013 the Transition Tigers,\u2019\u2019 Karen said jokingly.<\/p>\n

She is so thankful to be alive and appreciative of all of the care she received from providers at Memorial Hospital who helped her get back on her feet. \u201cI am happy and busy,\u2019\u2019 she said. \u201cWhen you think of what could have been, I\u2019m very grateful.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On a cool day in early June, Karen Johnson and her brother, Steven, had set out on a motorcycle trip to Montrose to visit some relatives. They were near Buena Vista when out of the blue, Karen\u2019s motorcycle wobbled. In a blink, Karen\u2019s motorcycle shot into the oncoming lane of traffic and a van struck […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":7728,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[423,55,21,565],"class_list":["post-7717","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-colorado-springs","tag-memorial-hospital","tag-southern-colorado","tag-trauma-services"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWoman run over by van able to walk again - UCHealth Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By the time all the surgeries were done, Karen had three plates and 20 screws in her pelvis alone. But she would eventually walk into her doctor's office.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Woman run over by van walks again\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By the time all the surgeries were done, Karen had three plates and 20 screws in her pelvis alone. But she would eventually walk into her doctor's office.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"UCHealth Today\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uchealthorg\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-01-25T23:32:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-07-19T17:42:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28144312\/postop.jpgeee.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Erin Emery, UCHealth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@uchealth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@uchealth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Erin Emery, UCHealth\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Erin Emery, UCHealth\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f989ee92cb6da7cfb7f697db1c6771b3\"},\"headline\":\"Woman run over by van walks again\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-01-25T23:32:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-07-19T17:42:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1780,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28144312\\\/postop.jpgeee.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"Colorado Springs\",\"Memorial Hospital\",\"Southern Colorado\",\"Trauma services\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/\",\"name\":\"Woman run over by van able to walk again - UCHealth Today\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28144312\\\/postop.jpgeee.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-01-25T23:32:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-07-19T17:42:11+00:00\",\"description\":\"By the time all the surgeries were done, Karen had three plates and 20 screws in her pelvis alone. But she would eventually walk into her doctor's office.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28144312\\\/postop.jpgeee.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2017\\\/01\\\/28144312\\\/postop.jpgeee.webp\",\"width\":800,\"height\":800,\"caption\":\"Postop Dr. Peter Fredericks, southern Colorado\u0092s only board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic trauma surgeon, performed surgeries on Karen Johnson\u0092s pelvis, rebuilding it with three plates and 20 screws.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Woman run over by van walks again\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/\",\"name\":\"UCHealth Today\",\"description\":\"UCHealth Today\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"UCHealth\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/24135149\\\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/24135149\\\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":1000,\"caption\":\"UCHealth\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/uchealthorg\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/uchealth\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/uchealth\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/school\\\/14839\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.com\\\/uchealthorg\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/channel\\\/UC41SJI79yjZIe96OajzN22g\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f989ee92cb6da7cfb7f697db1c6771b3\",\"name\":\"Erin Emery, UCHealth\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/dcbc519a86e2e2bbb057b69be9251292a18359ac42f269269b20ff261f26358b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/dcbc519a86e2e2bbb057b69be9251292a18359ac42f269269b20ff261f26358b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/dcbc519a86e2e2bbb057b69be9251292a18359ac42f269269b20ff261f26358b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Erin Emery, UCHealth\"},\"description\":\"Erin Emery was a long-time writer and editor UCHealth Today. She also spent years as a reporter for The Denver Post, the Colorado Springs Gazette and the Colorado Springs Sun. Erin was part of a team of Denver Post reporters who won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news reporting.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uchealth.org\\\/today\\\/author\\\/eemery\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Woman run over by van able to walk again - UCHealth Today","description":"By the time all the surgeries were done, Karen had three plates and 20 screws in her pelvis alone. But she would eventually walk into her doctor's office.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Woman run over by van walks again","og_description":"By the time all the surgeries were done, Karen had three plates and 20 screws in her pelvis alone. But she would eventually walk into her doctor's office.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/","og_site_name":"UCHealth Today","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uchealthorg\/","article_published_time":"2017-01-25T23:32:12+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-07-19T17:42:11+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28144312\/postop.jpgeee.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Erin Emery, UCHealth","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@uchealth","twitter_site":"@uchealth","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Erin Emery, UCHealth","Est. reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/"},"author":{"name":"Erin Emery, UCHealth","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/person\/f989ee92cb6da7cfb7f697db1c6771b3"},"headline":"Woman run over by van walks again","datePublished":"2017-01-25T23:32:12+00:00","dateModified":"2021-07-19T17:42:11+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/"},"wordCount":1780,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28144312\/postop.jpgeee.webp","keywords":["Colorado Springs","Memorial Hospital","Southern Colorado","Trauma services"],"articleSection":["Stories"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/","name":"Woman run over by van able to walk again - UCHealth Today","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28144312\/postop.jpgeee.webp","datePublished":"2017-01-25T23:32:12+00:00","dateModified":"2021-07-19T17:42:11+00:00","description":"By the time all the surgeries were done, Karen had three plates and 20 screws in her pelvis alone. But she would eventually walk into her doctor's office.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28144312\/postop.jpgeee.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2017\/01\/28144312\/postop.jpgeee.webp","width":800,"height":800,"caption":"Postop Dr. Peter Fredericks, southern Colorado\u0092s only board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic trauma surgeon, performed surgeries on Karen Johnson\u0092s pelvis, rebuilding it with three plates and 20 screws."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/woman-run-over-by-van-able-to-walk-again\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Woman run over by van walks again"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/","name":"UCHealth Today","description":"UCHealth Today","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#organization","name":"UCHealth","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2020\/04\/24135149\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2020\/04\/24135149\/UCHealth-square-logo-1000x1000-1.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"caption":"UCHealth"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uchealthorg\/","https:\/\/x.com\/uchealth","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uchealth\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/14839\/","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/uchealthorg\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UC41SJI79yjZIe96OajzN22g"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/#\/schema\/person\/f989ee92cb6da7cfb7f697db1c6771b3","name":"Erin Emery, UCHealth","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dcbc519a86e2e2bbb057b69be9251292a18359ac42f269269b20ff261f26358b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dcbc519a86e2e2bbb057b69be9251292a18359ac42f269269b20ff261f26358b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dcbc519a86e2e2bbb057b69be9251292a18359ac42f269269b20ff261f26358b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Erin Emery, UCHealth"},"description":"Erin Emery was a long-time writer and editor UCHealth Today. She also spent years as a reporter for The Denver Post, the Colorado Springs Gazette and the Colorado Springs Sun. Erin was part of a team of Denver Post reporters who won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news reporting.","url":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/author\/eemery\/"}]}},"coauthors":[{"id":20,"name":"Erin Emery","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/author\/eemery\/"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7717"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7717\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26628,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7717\/revisions\/26628"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7728"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7717"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}