For Jalen Richardson, there was never an awareness of being engulfed by fire, only the roar of a hard, driving wind. But the paramedics who responded to the call of his motorcycle accident knew the 20-year-old was lucky to be alive; an explosion and resulting flames had literally melted his jacket to the highway. Assessing his injuries, Emory surgeon Juvonda Hodge would find third-degree burns covering 60-70 percent of his body. This article follows Richardson's excruciating healing journey, aided by the complex science of burn care. But it is also a story about the powerful value of relationships—and the surprising places a broken young man found the connection, support, and motivation to keep moving forward.
We take readers inside Richardson's long, arduous trek toward recovery. and the critical work that goes on every day at the Grady Burn Center, the only comprehensive burn center in Atlanta, and one of the most highly rated in the nation. Led by Emory trauma surgeon Walter Ingram, the burn center treats some 3,500 adult and pediatric burn patients each year, and teaches the next generation of healers.
