Sadly, wryly, Deborah Mardenfeld describes herself as first in, last out.

First in, because she was among the first to be hospitalized on Sept. 11; she was Jane Doe No. 1 at New York University Downtown Hospital.

Last out, because it appears that she will be the last of the gravely injured to leave a hospital, something she hopes to do next month.

Ms. Mardenfeld, 31, was on her way to work that day when she was hit by falling debris from the second plane that slammed into the World Trade Center. Her legs were crushed below the knees, she lost skin and muscle on her buttocks, she suffered blood loss and trauma that can hardly be imagined.

She also lost the future she and Gregory St. John had dreamed of; engaged on Valentine's Day of last year, they had planned to be married this year, this month, on Sept. 21. They are still together, but as Mr. St. John said recently, ''It will be a whole new way of life for both of us -- and we were just getting used to the one we had.''