A message from St. John’s Health:
JACKSON, Wyo. — Janet Dodd came to Jackson Hole to experience the joys of the wild. She never expected to become the patient of one of the region’s most skilled fracture specialists.
On a warm afternoon last May, Grizzly 1063 made her way through the lush spring grasses of Pilgrim Creek with one fuzzy, frolicking cub in tow.
It was exactly the kind of sight that Janet Dodd cherished, and the kind that had kept her “girls crew” (including her sister and two grown nieces) returning to the Tetons year after year. May 2025 marked the group’s fifth visit to the region, and by this time their trips had taken on a familiar rhythm consisting of long hikes, spectacular wildlife encounters, and that particular brand of Teton magic that draws people in.
As seasoned visitors, the crew knew the routine when 1063 and her cub began to move. While the bears ambled down the meadow, Janet’s crew loaded up into their car as park rangers began to orchestrate the now-familiar bear jam shuffle.
It was a dance they’d been practicing all week: easing forward with fellow wildlife watchers, maneuvering carefully through crowds, and parking safely on inclines with wheels clear of traffic. But on this day, as Janet opened her car door to step out and view the next act of grizzly drama, she lost her footing on the uneven ground, rolled her ankle, and quickly found herself flat on her back, staring up at Wyoming sky.
“My left foot was pointing at a 90-degree angle,” she remembers. “I thought, ‘Is this even fixable?’ Then I almost got sick.”
An unexpected response
What happened next could only happen in a place like Jackson Hole.
From amongst the crowd of concerned bear watchers, a retired physician materialized and swiftly snapped into action. As rangers called for an ambulance, he knelt beside Janet, checking for a pulse in her severely injured foot. Blood flow: good. Spirits: shaky, but intact. He stayed beside her until the paramedics arrived, rattling off stats as if he’d been part of their team for years.
“I truly saw the best of humanity that day,” Janet later shared. Sometimes it takes lying in the dirt with a shattered ankle to realize just how many people will drop everything to help a stranger.
Ready for anything
Back in Jackson, Dr. Jason Provus was going about his day as an orthopedic trauma and fracture surgeon at St. John’s Health.
He didn’t yet know that his path was set to cross with Janet Dodd’s the next day. But his experience had more than prepared him for it. From high-impact skiing injuries to traumas sustained in Jackson’s backcountry, Dr. Provus had treated some of the region’s most complex orthopedic cases. It was work that demanded decisiveness, precision, and calm under pressure on the daily. When Janet needed him, he’d be ready.
More than ‘just a patient’
In the emergency room, Dr. Daniel Nelson delivered the verdict. Janet had a trimalleolar fracture with severe dislocation. In layman’s terms, she had broken her ankle in three places while completely dislocating it. It was a serious injury that would require quick surgical intervention.
Dr. Nelson immediately called in Dr. Provus to meet with Janet the next day. Until then, Janet would have PCU nurse Tiffany by her side.
Pain management, nausea control, family support — Tiffany helped Janet with it all throughout the night, treating her not just as “Room 12 with the ankle fracture” but as a vulnerable human having a very, very bad day on vacation.
“She didn’t see me ‘just as a patient’,” Janet explained. “In her eyes, I was much more than that.”
‘To this day, he’s part of my team‘
With Tiffany’s support, Janet weathered the night. But as dawn broke across the Tetons, the most intense part of her journey was just beginning.
When Dr. Provus entered Janet’s room, he brought his trademark wave of confidence and calm along with him. Sitting beside Janet, he spoke in detail with her about what was to come, covering everything from the surgery itself to post-op recovery. Janet quickly got the impression that this was someone “who had handled more complex cases than her ankle.”
Even more than his expertise, Janet was impressed by Dr. Provus’s communication and moved by the ample time he spent making sure she was comfortable. Even after she’d safely returned home to Houston to complete her recovery, his support and care continued. Not only did Dr. Provus provide a referral, he personally contacted Janet’s Houston orthopedist, providing extensive background and follow-ups to ensure she was healing properly.
“This wasn’t your normal patient hand-off,” Janet said. “To this day, he’s part of my care team.”
Where expertise meets empathy
Many people are drawn to the Tetons because it feels remote and “off the grid.” But that same sense of freedom and distance is the last thing someone wants when they’re in need of serious medical care.
Fortunately, when Janet’s vacation took an unexpected turn, she was met by Dr. Provus, a surgeon whose high level of technical skills and experience are matched by his genuine care and compassion. At St. John’s Health, she found a care team that was well versed in treating complex trauma, able to deliver the most advanced medical care with expertise and empathy. And she also gained firsthand experience with one of the Teton’s most magical offerings: a community that rallies around strangers when they need it most.
For locals heading into the backcountry and visitors like Janet alike, having access to expert, personalized care close at hand is an essential comfort. No matter how you experience life in the Tetons, the team at St. John’s Health is ready for anything — offering peace of mind and human connection, even in the most wild of places.
Dr. Jason Provus is an orthopedic trauma and fracture specialist with St. John’s Health, seeing patients at Teton Orthopedics. When you’re chasing powder, wildlife, or adventure in the Greater Yellowstone region, it’s reassuring to know that world-class orthopedic care is close to home.
