This is a part of the Hot Topic podcast series from the Model Systems Knowledge Translation Center on Exercise After Burn Injury. Jeffrey Schneider, MD, researcher, discusses Thriving Long Term.

Jeffrey Schneider, M.D.

Project Director, Boston-Harvard Burn Injury Model System Center

Medical Director, Burn & Trauma, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital

From my perspective when I look at someone like Diana, you know, I think it’s pretty amazing how well she’s doing and she really is an inspiration to us and to a lot of burn survivors. But I think the key is to figure out sort of what is the secret sauce, you know. What are the people who are doing well, what sort of techniques are they using and how they’re adapting to their injury and finding ways that, you know, help them recover?

And the more we, you know, we really need to learn more about this. I think this is an area of inquiry that we’re just starting to sort of scratch the surface on, you know, why people like Diana have been successful, you know, not that everything is hunky‑dory and everything is successful, but, you know, there are certain aspects of approaches she’s taken that have really worked for her.

And I think we need to find ways where we can sort of learn from that so that we can pass it on to other people. Part of that, you know, is the basis for the peer support process, which is, you know, burn survivors who have had some successes and things that have helped them and passing it on to others. But it’s important for the clinicians and researchers to look at this through our lens to figure out what are some of the ingredients that help make a recovery successful.

You know, we know that in the hospital, you know, early excision and grafting helps people survive burn injuries at higher rates than, you know, delayed surgery. But we need to apply that same sort of process to thinking about this longer-term recover. You know, what are the different approaches that are really successful in helping people live the rewarding lives they want to live? To the extent that we could be a part of helping people with that process I think is going to be really important going forward.

Visit https://msktc.org/burn and get the answers you need from experts who conduct innovative and high-quality research, provide patient care, and work to improve the health and overall quality of life for people with burn injury. That’s https://msktc.org/burn.