Jeffrey Guy, M.D., assistant professor of Surgery in the division of
Trauma & Surgical Critical Care, was recently named director of
Vanderbilt’s Regional Burn Center. Guy previously shared clinical and
administrative responsibilities in the Burn Center with Ronald Barton,
M.D., assistant professor of Plastic Surgery.
"Jeff Guy has done a remarkable job developing the burn program over
the past five years," said John A. Morris Jr., M.D., director of the
Division of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care. "With the planned
expansion and move to the main hospital the Burn Center is now poised
to become the premier burn facility in the Southeast."
Vanderbilt’s Regional Burn Center, currently one of the nation’s larger
burn centers, is a 20-bed Level I center with the capability to treat
the most severe burns in both children and adults. A full staff of
physicians, nurses, therapists and support personnel, including
psychiatrists and a chaplain, work together to provide comprehensive
physical and emotional care for patients.
"We’re seeing tremendous growth in the Burn Center. Two years ago we
had approximately 200 admissions. This year we anticipate around 350
admissions. In another couple of years I anticipate we’ll have as many
as 500 admissions," Guy said.
Thanks to LifeFlight’s new fixed-wing (airplane) service, Guys says
VUMC’s Regional Burn Center is now admitting patients from areas much
farther away, such as Virginia, North Carolina, Illinois and Arkansas.
"That’s really opened up our market," he said.
"We are seeing more pediatric patients than ever before. It’s an
exciting and challenging time. The challenges are creating new
opportunities."
Providing care for burn patients is among the most physically and
mentally challenging specialty a healthcare provider can endeavor. A
pivotal experience in Guy’s college days led him to seek burn care as a
profession.
"I was working as a paramedic, and was inside a badly wrecked car
caring for a patient who was trapped in the vehicle when it exploded.
My partner and I got out, but I literally had to stand there and watch
the patient burn to death," Guy said. "It was a horrible experience,
but it initiated me on a pathway to caring for burn
victims."
Guy says the Burn Center staff is further standardizing patient care to
improve efficiencies. The staff also recently partnered with Jeffrey
Canter, M.D., assistant professor of Molecular Physiology &
Biophysics in the Center for Human Genetics, for an exciting research
protocol examining patients’ physiologic responses to severe burns at
the genetic level. "There are a lot of exciting things going on right
now," Guy said.
Looking ahead, Guy is eagerly anticipating the opening of the new
28-bed Burn Unit on 11 South in Vanderbilt University Hospital in
December 2005. "That will position us as one of the very largest burn
centers in the nation’" he said.
The new Burn Center’s opening is scheduled to coincide with a regional
gathering of the American Burn Association hosted by VUMC.
"This is the most rewarding work I can imagine. Every day I go home feeling like I’ve made a difference," he said.
Contact: John Howser, (615) 322-4747
john.howser@vanderbilt.edu