Before the accident, Alford had been a solidly built six-footer and was used to being in charge. Now, entirely dependent on others, he fell into despair. «If it weren’t for my wife and kids, I would have killed myself,» he says. But then the love started pouring in. Alford’s brother maintained a blog to provide updates about Alford’s recovery. Over the next three months, he received 40,000 messages from colleagues, former patients, acquaintances, even strangers. The outpouring raised his spirits. It also gave Mary a new perspective on him. For years, Alford’s schedule of 15-hour days hadn’t left him much time for her and the kids. «I’d just about decided you liked work more than us,» Mary told him one day over lunch. «But now I realize you didn’t want to leave the hospital because there were so many folks that needed you. You couldn’t just abandon them.»
The couple refurbished their house with ramps, a wheelchair-accessible bathroom, and an elevator. They bought an extended-cab pickup truck and fitted it with a wheelchair hoist, a swivelling driver’s seat, and hand controls so Alford could drive himself.
But Alford’s goal was to make such adjustments temporary. After a month of physical therapy, he graduated from an electric to a manual wheelchair. The daily workouts built strength in his back and abdominal muscles, improving his ability to hold himself upright. Soon he was able to stand with the aid of a tubular steel frame; seated in his chair, he could now draw his legs toward his chest.
In May, Alford began the next phase of treatment. By putting a paralyzed patient through his paces, therapists hoped to grow new neuromuscular connections. After three months of this routine, Alford’s coordination had improved markedly. He felt ready to pick up a scalpel again, with the hospital’s approval. Alford still goes for four hours of rehab every morning and spends his evenings stretching and riding a motorized stationary bike to keep muscle spasms at bay. But in the hours between, he sees patients or performs surgeries – as many as five a week.
He’s eager to do more complex surgeries and plans to increase his workload. Walking remains uncertain. «I always tell him if I had a crystal ball, I’d be a millionaire,» says Marcie Kern, one of his physical therapists. Still, the doctor considers himself a lucky man.