From a Tragic Accident to a Swift Near-Full Recovery

When Bhuvan Unhelkar, a professor at the Muma College of Business at the University of South Florida, had an accident while horseback riding with a friend in Cody, Wyoming, rescuers acted quickly to get him to a local emergency room.

“Cody, Wyoming is a quaint town—history, tall pines, draft beer and horses. I went in early September with a dear friend. After watching ferocious bison in Yellowstone, a two-hour horse ride sounded fun. Alas, minutes in, a cramp hit; when Jenny (the horse) dipped on a ridge, I lost the saddle and reins, tumbled headlong, and struck a tree stump. I couldn’t breathe.

“Pain exploded, my head bled. An inflatable one-wheel stretcher and ten rescuers got me down the mountain. At the emergency room, nine staples sealed my scalp—and the verdict came: two cervical and five thoracic vertebrae were crushed.”

“Get Bhuvan to Florida now.”

Bhuvan’s traveling companion contacted his friends in Florida and the response was unanimous, “Get Bhuvan to Florida now.”

“After an X-ray, CT scan and MRI, Dr. Eric B. Sundberg operated almost immediately at Lakewood Ranch Medical Center. The operation took over five hours and included placing parallel titanium rods like railway tracks up my spine.”

“Reflection Brings Gratitude”

“I wouldn’t wish this on anyone, but reflection brings gratitude.”  Thanks to Dr. Sundberg’s expertise, with Dr. Richard Aranibar and Dr. Faisal Ahmad supporting, and superb nursing care, I survived without paralysis, had zero post-surgical infection, left the ICU in five days, finished rehab eight days post-op, stopped all meds within four weeks and now walk, talk, eat, sleep and shower pain-free.

“The ICU at LWRMC raised my respect, particularly for nurses, sky high. A raised call button brought help in seconds. Smiles, privacy, thoughtfulness—always.

“My wife, Asha, and I thank everyone for bringing me back from the brink of death or paralysis to near-full recovery—so swiftly.”