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GIRARD —
Girard Medical Center trauma center was verified by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment this week as a Level IV Trauma Center.
According to Dr. Adam Paoni, Director of Emergency Services, it is the first Level IV trauma center in southeast Kansas. Paoni, who played an instrumental role in the verification process, said he is delighted with the outcome.
“We’re very proud of that,” Paoni said. “Only two others have been approved so far.”
Robert Moser, KDHE Secretary and State Health Officer, said trauma center designation is one component of a comprehensive statewide trauma system designed to get patients with life-threatening injuries to a hospital with the necessary resources.
“We congratulate Girard Medical Center for serving as a vital resource when every second matters,” Moser said in a release.
Level IV trauma centers are rural hospitals whose primary role is to stabilize seriously injured patients and, if necessary, transfer them to a higher level trauma center, Paoni said. The staff in hospitals that have achieved Level IV trauma center designation have undergone specialized training, and designated trauma centers must meet the essential criteria laid out by the American College of Surgeons and endorsed by the Kansas Advisory Committee on Trauma.
“It’s an entire state undertaking and it’s quite significant,” Paoni said. “It should have a huge impact on trauma care in Kansas.”
Paoni said there are four separate categories of designation by the Kansas Trauma Program. Each category has specific criteria that must be met by a facility seeking that level of designation. A trauma care system includes a network of hospitals providing a spectrum of care for injured patients. Trauma center designations are based on the hospital’s care capability, from the highest, Level I — which would have a neurosurgeon on site around the clock and can provide “definitive” care — to hospitals designated Level IV, whose job is primarily to diagnose patients and have them transported to the nearest upper-level center.
Girard Medical Center trauma center was verified by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment this week as a Level IV Trauma Center.
According to Dr. Adam Paoni, Director of Emergency Services, it is the first Level IV trauma center in southeast Kansas. Paoni, who played an instrumental role in the verification process, said he is delighted with the outcome.
“We’re very proud of that,” Paoni said. “Only two others have been approved so far.”
Robert Moser, KDHE Secretary and State Health Officer, said trauma center designation is one component of a comprehensive statewide trauma system designed to get patients with life-threatening injuries to a hospital with the necessary resources.
“We congratulate Girard Medical Center for serving as a vital resource when every second matters,” Moser said in a release.
Level IV trauma centers are rural hospitals whose primary role is to stabilize seriously injured patients and, if necessary, transfer them to a higher level trauma center, Paoni said. The staff in hospitals that have achieved Level IV trauma center designation have undergone specialized training, and designated trauma centers must meet the essential criteria laid out by the American College of Surgeons and endorsed by the Kansas Advisory Committee on Trauma.
“It’s an entire state undertaking and it’s quite significant,” Paoni said. “It should have a huge impact on trauma care in Kansas.”
Paoni said there are four separate categories of designation by the Kansas Trauma Program. Each category has specific criteria that must be met by a facility seeking that level of designation. A trauma care system includes a network of hospitals providing a spectrum of care for injured patients. Trauma center designations are based on the hospital’s care capability, from the highest, Level I — which would have a neurosurgeon on site around the clock and can provide “definitive” care — to hospitals designated Level IV, whose job is primarily to diagnose patients and have them transported to the nearest upper-level center.
