“Melissa Smith is the heart and soul of the trauma program and is involved in every aspect of the oversight and functioning of the trauma service.”

Heather Burich had just driven to Clarksville after an appointment on Vanderbilt Health's Nashville campus when she got a call from a doctor she was yet to meet. The news about her echocardiogram results was alarming.

With the help of the team from Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital, yes he could.

Kevin Plowman, RN, works in the Medical Intensive Care Unit at Vanderbilt University Hospital. He is one of the latest Vanderbilt Health DAISY Award winners.

Trauma patients come to VUH from a region covering 80,000 square miles, and approximately 9,400 acute trauma patients are treated at the hospital annually.

First baby at VWCH: Cash Mitchell; first baby at VTHH: Gwennyth Trinity Grace Freeze-Stele.

Take a heartwarming walk down the 2024 memory lane. Relive highlights from breakthrough discoveries to patient journeys — and one long flight path.