Brandy Ferrell and her father, Brian Ferrell, R.N., are extremely grateful for the care Mark Spicer, M.D., (top l.) and Geraldo Salcedo, M.D., (top r.) provided after Brandy's car crash the day after Thanksgiving last year.

The day after Thanksgiving last year, Mark Spicer, M.D., a neurosurgeon on the medical staff at Southwest Healthcare System, emerged from the operating room. He proceeded to explain an eight-hour procedure to Brian Ferrell, R.N., a nurse in the Intensive Care Unit at Inland Valley Medical Center.

The patient, a 19-year-old college sophomore, had suffered multiple injuries in a car crash. The surgery involved removing a portion of her skull to cauterize five bleeding vessels in her brain and fusing together three damaged vertebrae. It was an extremely complex procedure, but it had gone well and she was expected to pull through.

As an ICU nurse, Mr. Ferrell had heard many similar stories. This time, "I only heard 'she's going to be okay,'" he recalls. That's because the patient was his daughter, Brandy.

Brandy and three friends had been heading south on Interstate 215 when a truck cut them off, causing their vehicle to flip several times before resting on the passenger side. Brandy, in the front passenger seat, was the only person seriously injured.

The ER physician on call that night was Geraldo Salcedo, M.D. He briefed Mr. Ferrell and his wife, who also is a nurse, when they arrived at Inland Valley Medical Center. One of Mr. Ferrell's first calls was to Dr. Spicer, with whom he had worked almost every day during the past several years.

Mr. Ferrell realized how serious the situation was when he saw his daughter's CAT scan, and he knew it could get worse. "I had seen how people could deteriorate from injuries like these," he says. "The only thing going through my mind was that I could lose my daughter."

Brandy spent the next seven days in the hospital, making incremental progress daily. "The first big milestone was when she was able to move her left arm enough to put a donut in her mouth," Mr. Ferrell says. "Until that point, we weren't sure if she'd be able to feed herself, let alone walk."

On the other hand, Brandy had no doubts. "I never thought I wouldn't be able to recover," she says. She continued to push herself through therapy, which began almost immediately after surgery and continued at Casa Colina, a rehabilitation facility in Pomona. She left the facility on December 18, in time to spend the holiday season at home with her family.

Although she is still working to regain full function in her right arm, Brandy has made an almost complete recovery. She even has resumed taking online classes at Mt. San Jacinto College, with the goal of becoming a high school guidance counselor.

"The whole experience made me realize just how strong Brandy is," says her dad. "I'm very proud that she's come so far, and I'm thankful that she still has her whole life ahead of her."

Did You Know?
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, handheld cell phones are involved in at least a quarter of all crashes. California is one state that has taken action. Beginning in July, it will be illegal to drive in California while talking on a cell phone unless using a headset or other technology that keeps both hands free.

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