Joe’s Story

After a car accident in his youth left Joe Battaglia with a shattered and broken body, he was told he may never walk or work again. 

It was spring of 1975 when a car accident changed Joe’s life forever. The impact was catastrophic. Joe, then fourteen years old, sustained serious injuries including a broken femur, fractured vertebrae, and a head injury. When he finally came to in the hospital, doctors had already pinned and plated his left hip.  

He was so young at the time, yet faced the daunting prognosis that he may never walk or work again.

When Joe finally returned home – be it, in a body cast – he continued to spend the next several years in-and-out of hospital for hardware replacements in his hip. When he reached his mid-thirties, he was finally a candidate for a hip replacement.  

After surgery, Joe came to the Glenrose where he spent several months inpatient doing intense physical therapy, learning how to use his new hip and regain his mobility. 

And that was just his first visit to the Glenrose. Little did he know that he would be back – three times again – for different reasons.  

Fast-forward to 2018, the injuries from his car accident continued to show up in different parts of his body.  

That year, Joe had both spinal fusion surgery and a shoulder replacement, spending six weeks in the hospital’s spinal cord injury unit recovering. Then in 2021, after spending years battling infections, he had hip disarticulation surgery – an incredibly rare surgery – which amputated his entire leg through the hip joint. 

Believing he may never walk again, Joe learned to adapt, doing activities in new ways within the limitations of his wheelchair.  

Then it was 2023 and Joe found himself at the Glenrose, yet again. After becoming almost completely paralyzed in his hands from a pinched spinal cord, the hospital helped him gain back almost complete mobility in his hands.  

In his most recent visit, Joe spent time in the amputation rehabilitation program.  

An active individual, he aspired to return to some of his greatest joys in life: sailing, golfing, and most importantly, fulfilling his role as a grandpa.  

And the Glenrose helped him do that.  

Joe was fitted with a full prosthetic leg with a computer-controlled knee. While it was very challenging to learn, with therapy, he built up his core strength learning to go up-and-down stairs and walk on uneven surfaces.

During three out of four of his visits to the Glenrose, Joe accessed the therapeutic pool. “It was really good to have that to be able to get back into sailing,” he shares.

In the pool, he practiced therapies to help him improve his balance and simulate movements he would need to safely return to sailing, like getting on and off a boat, swimming, and balancing with one leg.

“I could do so much more in the pool,” says Joe. “Everything in the water is easier because it’s weightless. With my spine, neck, and back injuries, its made a huge difference for me. I don’t know how far behind I would be if I didn’t have the pool.” 

And today, his therapists continue to support him in meeting his goals, his next being to walk without crutches.