Trauma Services
North Memorial is verified as a Level I Trauma Center – the highest verification a trauma care center can achieve. There are only a few such hospitals in the Upper Midwest. Essentially, it means we have resources to treat every possible injury. The American College of Surgeons (ACS) grants the verification after a rigorous review of a hospital’s staff and resources – for example, its ability to provide a wide variety of services for patients requiring such specialized care.
Some of these resources include trauma surgeons and neurosurgeons trained to treat adult and pediatric patients, advanced radiology facilities and injury prevention specialists. Critical care services must be immediately available 24 hours a day. A Level I trauma center is also required to participate in research, public education and outreach – services we provided long before receiving our verification from the ACS.
Most important is the individualized treatment plan each patient receives. A nurse clinician and surgeon follow an individual’s care throughout his or her stay. This coordinated effort leads to improved patient outcomes and easier follow-up for referring clinicians. Our multi-disciplinary staff of critical care professionals is devoted to managing resources, so our patients receive the best care from the right people at the right time.
To be a Level I Trauma Center, a hospital must meet certain criteria, including the following capabilities:
- Attending trauma surgeon in the hospital at all times
- Cardiopulmonary bypass
- Hemodialysis
- Nuclear scanning and neuroradiology
- Injury prevention research and programs
- Trauma research
- Comprehensive trauma surgical services: cardiac, microvascular, pediatric, neuro and orthopedic
- Hospitalist and critical care intensivist services
- Physician outreach and customer service
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