In Good Hands: Restoring Hand Function

Early in the afternoon of March 21, 2023, 35-year-old Tom Drewiske was cleaning out a large machine at a cheese factory near Green Bay where he had worked for the past decade when his left hand and arm, halfway up to the elbow, got caught in an industrial auger. The auger, a rotating, spiral-shaped mechanism, wrapped around his arm and compressed it to the point of cutting off the blood supply.

His coworkers unplugged the machine and began to dismantle it, but Tom’s hand and arm could not be separated from the auger. He was transported to a local hospital where the auger was removed, but Tom needed more specialized care.

By early evening, he was transported by Flight For Life to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee, the academic medical center of the Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin health network. He was met by a care team led by Patrick Hettinger, MD, plastic and reconstructive surgeon and MCW faculty member. Dr. Hettinger specializes in hand and upper extremity surgery. 

“My initial thoughts were that I would lose my hand and arm and would never be able to work again,” Tom said. “But Dr. Hettinger told me they would do everything they could to get the function back in my arm and hand. I had complete faith in him.”

Plastic and Reconstructive Hand Surgery 

Doctors who specialize in plastic and reconstructive surgery have a broad range of expertise in the repair of tiny blood vessels and nerves. This skill is particularly valuable during hand surgery, as it enables plastic surgeons to perform complex procedures when treating serious injuries while also making the hand look as normal as possible.

“Tom’s injury was quite severe, and we had to act quickly to prevent amputation,” Dr. Hettinger said. “Both bones in his forearm were broken, as were his wrist and all of his fingers. There was also serious trauma to his arteries, nerves and tendons, so we knew several surgeries would be needed to restore function.”

The first and most critical step in the initial surgery was to restore blood flow to Tom’s injured limb, followed by the repair of his multiple fractures. A second surgery, several days later, involved cleaning the injury site and prepping it for further surgeries.

Reconstruction Surgery Restores Nerve Damage

Tom had five additional surgeries during the next two years, including a tissue transfer from his thigh to replace missing skin on his forearm, as well as nerve and tendon reconstruction.

During nerve reconstruction, Dr. Hettinger removed scar tissue, sewed nerve ends together and used nerve grafts to bridge the gaps between damaged nerves.

Tendon reconstruction to restore Tom’s ability to bend his fingers required two stages. In the first stage, Dr. Hettinger placed silicone rods in all of Tom’s fingers except the thumb. In the second stage, done several months later, Dr. Hettinger replaced the silicone rods with free tendon grafts from Tom’s thigh.

“Tendons in the hand are particularly important because we need them to be able to move our fingers,” Dr. Hettinger said. “I am very pleased we were able to restore this critical function to Tom.”

After his first two surgeries, Tom began extensive rehabilitation therapy at the Froedtert & MCW Hand Center at the Tosa Health Center. He worked with Kimberly Schroeder, occupational therapist. He also did therapy in Green Bay, closer to home. Intensive hand therapy was critical throughout Tom’s recuperation to restore function, strength and range of motion. 

“Dr. Hettinger and his team kept me motivated,” Tom said. “They told me that the more work I put into my therapy, the better my limb would heal. I really wanted to push through to have the best outcome.”

Rehabilitation Increases Hand Mobility

Tom was amazing from the moment I met him,” Dr. Hettinger said. “He was calm throughout his surgeries and dedicated himself to his rehabilitation. He had an outstanding outcome, which was due in large part to his extremely positive attitude and his hard work.”

Tom still works at the cheese factory and marvels that he can do all the things he loved to do before he was injured — especially hunting and fishing. He was particularly excited to go snowmobiling this past winter after getting the “all clear” from his care team in November 2025.

“Dr. Hettinger, his team and everyone at Froedtert Hospital treated me like family,” Tom said. “They were personable, calm and straightforward with me from day one, which put me at ease. Other than a few issues with gripping, there’s really nothing I can’t do. I have the rest of my life in front of me with a functional hand. For that I am eternally grateful.”

As part of eastern Wisconsin’s only adult Level I Trauma Center, we regularly treat the most severe hand and upper-extremity injuries. Patients with hand and arm conditions of all kinds benefit from our expertise. Learn more at froedtert.com/hand.