WVU Medicine Children’s saves life of 15-year-old West Virginia boy

Posted on 12/7/2021

MORGANTOWN, W.VA. - Debbie Turner, a resident of Rowlesburg, will never forget the moment she got the call no parent or grandparent ever wants to receive. The date was Aug. 15, 2021, and the news was devastating: Debbie's 15-year-old grandson, Brayton Turner, had been in a terrible four-wheeling accident.

After being thrown from his ATV during a ride with friends near Newburg Dam, Brayton was in serious condition. Neighbors who witnessed the accident called 911. Within minutes, Brayton was airlifted to WVU Medicine Children's for emergency care.

"If it wasn't for the life flight team and the doctors, nurses, surgeons, specialists, CNAs, and entire care team at WVU Medicine, my grandson might not be here today," Debbie Turner says.

Life-threatening injuries
Upon arrival at Ruby Memorial Hospital, Brayton was treated by a team of dedicated nurses from the WVU Medicine Children's Critical Care and Trauma Center and orthopaedic surgeon David Tager, M.D.

Debbie Turner and her daughter-in-law, Crystal - Brayton's mother - were told that Brayton had crushed nearly every vertebra in his back. He also had a broken neck, a broken right arm, a bruise to the aortic vein in his heart, and a puncture in his lungs.

"It was awful," Debbie Turner says. "Dr. Tager told us if damage to Brayton's back and neck had extended a fraction more, the accident may have killed him or caused paralysis."

Expert trauma care
When he arrived at the hospital, Brayton's care team feared he was at risk of losing his right arm since his broken humerus bone was pressing on critical veins and nerves - closing off both feeling and blood flow to his arm. Rushed into surgery, Dr. Tager and a vascular surgeon worked to repair and save his arm.

The following day, Dr. Tager performed a second surgery to repair Brayton's back, installing rods and plates to support and mend his crushed vertebrae.

Coming out of surgery, Brayton was placed on a ventilator for a short time because of the damage to his lungs. Doctors also fitted him for a brace to address the injury to his neck.

During his time in the hospital, Brayton received around-the-clock care from a devoted team of WVU Medicine Children's trauma nurses, attending physicians, and his 20-year-old sister, Brooke Davis, who works at the hospital and is a student at the WVU School of Nursing.

"When she wasn't in school, she was with him," says Debbie Turner. "We're so grateful the nurses and doctors let her be in the room with him."

On the mend
Since late August, Brayton has been recuperating at home. He attends physical therapy two-to-three times a week and has routine follow-up visits with Dr. Tager, who is overseeing his recovery.

Brayton currently attends school remotely, but he hopes to attend in person later this year. He still doesn't have complete feeling in his right fingers, but his doctors believe that may return with time.

Looking back over the last few months, Debbie Turner feels Brayton's recovery is nothing short of miraculous.

"He is one lucky boy," she says. "I thank God every day that he's alive. It is a miracle. I praise the WVU Medicine doctors and nurses to the high heavens. I think of them as angels. If it weren't for their quick response and care, I wouldn't have my grandson right now."

For more information on WVU Medicine Children's, visit WVUKids.com.