At Friday’s Stephen J. Hegarty Memorial Lecture, Will Lautzenheiser, a quadruple amputee who lost his limbs following an aggressive and sudden case of streptococcus infection in 2011 that led to necrotizing fasciitis, delivered the Stephen J. Hegarty Memorial Lecture. He spoke with seriousness and humor about what worked and didn't throughout his caregiving experiences -- from the relationships he formed with clinical staff, to how sudden transitions between care settings could be destabilizing, to even how hospital food can affect recovery.
"I came to rely on these [caregivers] not just as my friends but as people who allowed me to maintain my sanity and to see the the humor and absurdity of what had happened to me," Lautzenheiser said.
Lautzenheiser fell ill out of state, and came back to Boston for treatment at Boston Medical Center and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital. He received a double arm transplant at Brigham and Women's Hospital.