Meet Vernon

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On January 1, 2020, musician Vernon West was admitted to the hospital. He wouldn’t go home again for eight months.

After a four-year battle with leukemia, Vernon had developed a brain mass that caused him to lose all feeling in his right arm and leg. He’s spent much of 2020 in acute care and rehab facilities—a journey further complicated by the COVID-19 crisis. Vernon says he earned back his strength at Spaulding Nursing and Therapy Center Brighton, thanks to the skill and compassion of his dedicated team.

“Their devotion and love, and steadfast belief in me, was an integral part of my rehab experience,” Vernon says. “That has an effect even beyond their skills—and they have a lot of skill!”

At Spaulding, we help our patients and families find their physical strength, and also their emotional strength and confidence. It’s an important facet of rehabilitation and recovery, especially in light of the current pandemic.

And donor support helps fuel that strength. This year, unrestricted donations to Spaulding have funded employee assistance grants for those in need, helped purchase critical personal protective equipment (PPE), supplied nourishing snack packs and meals to staff during shifts, and so much more. Through these efforts, donations give strength to our care teams—so that they can be strong for our patients and families.

A rock musician and vocalist who toured the world in the ’70s and ’80s with his brother as the Boston-based band Sass, Vernon can’t wait to get back to his music, writing, and podcast work. With his leukemia in remission and his strength increasing each day, Vernon says with a laugh that he’s “almost glad to have gone through all this to experience the amazing care at Spaulding. Almost.”