On April 7, 2017, a freak accident sent Owen Canavan to Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Trauma Intensive Care Unit. After a car crashed through the window of his gym and pinned him to the wall, Owen was rushed to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in critical condition, eventually requiring eight surgeries to repair a shattered femur, a ruptured spleen and extensive injuries to his pelvis and lower abdomen.

“The doctors and the nurses on the 10th floor in the trauma center at VUMC were, and will always remain my heroes,” said Owen, who along with his family established an endowment in his name that will benefit the VUMC Trauma program.

“When we receive trauma patients, especially ones who are injured so violently, there is a typical sense that even if they recover, they’ll never fully recover,” said Oscar Guillamondegui, MD, MPH, professor of Surgery, chief of the Division of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care for the Department of Surgery, who was part of Owen’s care team along with Rick Miller, MD, former chief of the Division of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care, and Manny Sethi, MD, assistant professor of Orthopaedic Surgery. Owen’s parents flew to Nashville right away and started asking family members and friends to pray for their son. In just two weeks, Owen was in a stepdown unit, making significant progress.

“You know, they always have to tell you the worst-case scenario that could happen, and every time he (Owen) had a procedure, which were all life-threatening, what ended up happening was the best possible outcome,” said Owen’s mother, Beth.

On his birthday, March 5, 2019 — nearly two years after the accident — Owen proved to himself he was finally ready to put the past behind him. “I went back to the gym, and it was really emotional, but I just took it slow, and I’ve been there ever since, continuing to make progress,” he said.

“Not everyone can do the work that the Trauma staff does. It’s extraordinary, and the fact that they do it day in and day out still puts me in awe.” — Beth Canavan, Owen’s mom

In thanks for Owen’s stellar treatment and successful recovery, the Canavans decided they would help support future trauma team members. Owen’s parents — Beth Owen Canavan and Karl Burgess Canavan — made a charitable contribution to VUMC to establish the Owen Burgess Canavan Fellowship Fund. The gift will support the fellowship program in the Division of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care.

Owen says, “The fact that I can exercise and live life without pain is truly incredible and a testament to the quality of care I received, which includes all the trauma doctors and nurses who were rooting for me all the way.”