About Joseph M. Still Burn Center

The Joseph M. Still Burn Center treats more than 3,000 patients annually and is nationally recognized as a leader in burn research and treatment. We are the region's leading experts in burn and wound care with more than three decades of experience healing difficult wounds, skin disorders and burns.

For more than 30 years, our world-renowned team of highly skilled physicians, specially trained burn nurses and medical staff are ready for simple to the most complex burns. Our mission is to restore lives through innovative burn care, functionally, cosmetically and emotionally in a nurturing, compassionate and personal environment.

When you come to the Joseph M. Still Burn Center, our burn specialists will quickly begin working together to evaluate and treat your burn. We have experience with all types of burns – including thermal and chemical burns – ensuring you get the care you need to heal.

  • Nation's largest Burn Center and third largest in the world
  • Verified by the American Burn Association
  • Level II Trauma Center verified by the American College of Surgeons
  • 99 beds dedicated for burn patients, including 38 ICU Beds, and 8 dedicated Operating Rooms
  • Designated Burn and Trauma Center
  • Inpatient and Outpatient Care
  • Adult and Pediatric Care
To learn more, please call us at (855) 863-9595.

Specialized Care for Burns

Burn care requires specific stabilization and treatment methods – and the rate of your recovery depends on the severity of your injuries. At the Joseph M. Still Burn Center, our experienced burn specialists have the training and technology to help you through the entire process with compassion and care.

We offer treatments for the following issues:

Burns

Chemical burns
Electrical burns
Friction burn/road crash
Frostbite
Inhilation Burns
Radiation Burns
Thermal Burns

Critical Care

Hand and Extremity Injuries
Complex/traumatic injuries
Crush injuries
Degloving
Limb salvage
Peripheral nerve
Replantation

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
24/7 coverage
Carbon monoxide
Dive complications
Wound healing

Microvascular Surgery

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Breast
Facial
Laser scar therapy
Scar revision

Skin and Soft Tissue Disorders
Diabetic wounds
Fournier's gangrene
Necrotizing fasciitis
Necrotizing soft tissue diseases
Skin sloughing disorders
Staphylococcal scalding skin syndrome
Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS)/Toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN)

Our burn treatment team

The burn and wound experts at our treatment center work together to create the most comprehensive, efficient care plan for every patient. Our team is made up of medical professionals from a wide range of specialties, so we can easily provide multidisciplinary care when needed. Our patient care teams include:

  • Burn technicians
  • Case managers
  • Certified wound specialists
  • Dietitians
  • Licensed practical nurses
  • Nurse practitioners
  • Occupational therapists
  • Pharmacists
  • Physical therapists
  • Physician assistants
  • Radiologists
  • Registered nurses
  • Respiratory therapists
  • Social workers
  • Surgeons

Pediatric burn care

Treating pediatric patients in need of burn care requires exceptional skill and experience to ensure the best possible outcomes. Kids require special nutritional plans, sometimes up to double the calories a child would typically consume in a day, and close monitoring throughout the wound healing process.

Burn scars can seriously inhibit normal movement, which is why extra attention is needed when treating burn scars in children whose bodies are still growing. Our burn center team includes pediatric therapists and surgeons who work closely to treat the skin's regrowth.

Burn Foundation of America

Founded by Dr. Joseph M. Still, the Burn Foundation of America helps patients and families being treated at our burn center. The foundation provides many free services for burn patients and their families, including:

  • Anti-scarring garments
  • Daily meals
  • Lodging at the Jeffrey Vaden Chavis House on the campus of Doctors Hospital
  • Medications
  • Transportation

The Jeffrey Vaden Chavis House

Patients in the burn center may remain in the hospital for as little as one week or as long as 10 weeks. Finding an affordable place to stay during that time is difficult for many families, since most of our burn patients are not from Augusta. The Burn Foundation of America manages a residence on the campus of Doctors Hospital where families of burn patients can stay close to their loved ones for free. The residence is named after Jeffrey Vaden Chavis, a South Carolina firefighter who dies in the line of duty.

The Chavis House amenities include:

  • Family room with TV
  • Kitchen for warming up food
  • One hot meal daily for burn victim families (provided by local churches)
  • Sleeping accommodations for up to 50 people
  • Washer and dryer

Community outreach initiatives

The Joseph M. Still Burn Center coordinates educational and community outreach programs. We offer professional training programs and promote fire prevention awareness to communities worldwide. For more information, call (855) 863-9595.

Learn more about Joseph M. Still

Joseph M. Still, Jr., MD dedicated his professional life to improvements in the treatment of burn patients. As founder of the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctors Hospital in Augusta, he teamed up with Doctors Hospital in 1978 to build one of the world's leading treatment facilities for burn victims.

Dr. Still founded the Burn Foundation of America, a non-profit organization devoted to helping burn patients and their families with non-medical necessities. The foundation operates the Jeffery Vaden Chavis House, a long-time dream of Dr. Still's, which is a place for people to stay while their family members are in the burn center.

Leadership was a way of life for Dr. Still. At 13 years old, he became an Eagle Scout, and numerous honors and achievements led to his nomination as one of the “Outstanding Young Men in America.” A Charlotte, NC native, Dr. Still attended Shorter College in Rome, GA, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology and chemistry. He earned his medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia in 1965 and completed his residencies at Duke University in 1973. Education was important to Dr. Still. He not only encouraged others to further their education, but he also financially supported their efforts.

Dr. Still and his wife, Sue, have 10 children and 26 grandchildren. They enjoyed traveling the world together, including taking annual trips with their children. They also shared a love for animals. They expressed that love through the care of more than 1,000 exotic birds.

Dr. Still was a giant of a man, with a heart to match his size. He was a visionary, seeing the bigger picture that most could not see. Determined, generous, compassionate, hard-working, risk-taking and problem-solving only begin to describe this friend and family man who affected the lives of thousands—and was loved by just as many.

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