Future Healers, created in part by students at the UofL School of Medicine, builds relationships with children who have been impacted by gun violence.

Students in the UofL Student National Medical Association (SNMA) worked closely with UofL Health trauma surgeons and Christopher 2X Game Changers to create the Future Healers Program. It ultimately helps Louisville youth affected by violence to navigate the trauma and inspires them to build better futures for themselves and their communities by introducing them to opportunities in the medical field.  

A ceremony on Tuesday, May 9 honored the medical students and showed appreciation for the time and effort they put into building the curriculum and stimulating a real impact on these kids and teenagers. Karen Udoh, who has served as a leader and voice of the Future Healers Program, was recognized with a special send off as she heads to Baltimore to start her residency with the Johns Hopkins Department of Medicine. Udoh will remain a part of Future Healers as an advisor.

Since October of 2020, the partnership has brought over 100 kids to the program.

Louisville has seen a significant increase in gun violence in the last decade, including two mass shootings in the last month. The health care response from the UofL Hospital – J. David Richardson Trauma Center, paired with the Future Healers Program aims to create a hope for the kids in this community.

Gunshot wound survivors Sheronda Morris Jasper, Cierra Twyman Miller and Dionte Reed shared their stories and personal words of thanks to the nurses and physicians for the care that allowed each of them, as well as thousands of other victims of violence, to recover from their wounds.

“We appreciate you putting your blessed hands on us. You put us back together piece by piece, hoping for us to have a better life,” Jasper said. “You put your life aside to make sure our wounds are healed.”

Kimberly Denzik, MSN, RN, trauma program manager, accepted the “Healing & Compassion Award” on behalf of the trauma outreach team. Brian Harbrecht, MD, UofL Hospital trauma medical director, accepted the “Endless Stairway Award” on behalf of the trauma surgeons.

Christopher 2X Game Changers, a foundation established by 2X to reduce crime through educational opportunities, had the awards specially designed for the UofL teams.

“We have witnessed the power of the healing hands of the UofL trauma surgeons and the caring hearts of the trauma outreach team,” 2X said. “These people have helped save thousands of lives that could have been lost to violence in Metro Louisville and beyond.”

Check out video from the event: 

During a 17-hour procedure on Sept. 17, Louella Aker underwent a double hand transplant at Jewish Hospital. The 69-year-old acquired an infection while involved in the cleanup of Henryville, Indiana, after an EF4 tornado hit the area on March 2, 2012. Aker was later diagnosed with septicemia and underwent a bilateral, below-the-knee amputation on her legs, left forearm amputation, and right partial hand amputation. Aker was added to the organ donor registry in September 2015.

“There are so many things you cannot do without your hands. This will change my life and allow me to do the things I miss, like holding my granddaughter’s hand,” Aker said at a news conference on Oct. 19. “I spent many days praying for a donor, but also crying for the donor’s family for their loss. This is such a huge and exquisite gift they have given me and I thank and bless them for their sacrifice. I also want to thank the surgeons, my family and my church for their support.”

Twenty surgeons from UofL, CMKI and Kleinert Kutz performed the procedure. Fourteen staff members and six anesthesiologists also assisted with the surgery.

“Although a little slow, we are pleased with the progress that Louella has been making,” said Tuna Ozyurekoglu, MD, lead surgeon on the procedure and assistant clinical professor of orthopedic surgery at UofL. “She is truly a fighter who has continued to grow stronger each day following this surgery. We look forward to watching her return to her normal activities, as she shows the world how successful transplantation can be.”

“Operations such as this help demonstrate the enormous importance of organ and tissue donation,” said Christopher Jones, MD, associate professor of surgery at UofL and director of abdominal transplantation at Jewish Hospital. “If it were not for the donor family graciously agreeing to limb donation, the efforts of Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates and neighboring organ procurement organizations, this certainly would not have been possible.”

Aker was placed on immunosuppressive medications to prevent rejection of the new hand.

“She is tolerating her medications, and to date, has no signs of clinical rejection,” said Jones, who is overseeing the patient’s immunosuppressive therapy by closely monitoring her for signs of rejection and adverse reaction to medications.

“It is amazing to be part of an extraordinary team, performing procedures such as this double hand transplant,” said Stuart K. Williams, II, PhD, director, Bioficial Organs Program, Cardiovascular Innovation Institute. “New innovations developed by investigators at the Cardiovascular Innovation Institute are being translated to help patients recover more quickly from transplant surgery.”

The Louisville team developed the pioneering hand transplant procedure and has performed hand transplants on 10 patients since 1999. The clinical trial is led by Ozyurekoglu with research at the CMKI and the Cardiovascular Innovation Institute, a partnership of UofL and the Jewish Heritage Fund for Excellence.

Funding for the surgical procedure was provided by the Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s Foundation, part of KentuckyOne Health.

Video of Aker’s hand transplant can be .