Brenner Children's Hospital at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center recently received Level I Pediatric Trauma Center status from the Verification Review Committee (VRC), an ad hoc committee of the Committee on Trauma (COT) of the American College of Surgeons (ACS). Brenner Children's Hospital is the only children's hospital in North Carolina to receive this prestigious designation.
"Level I pediatric trauma verification is a great accomplishment for Wake Forest Baptist," said James Hoekstra, M.D., chair and professor of Emergency Medicine. "This means that no matter what your child’s injuries, we have the staff, equipment and expertise to manage it."
The COT's Consultation/Verification Program for Hospitals promotes the development of trauma centers in which participants provide not only the hospital resources necessary for trauma care, but also the entire spectrum of care to address the needs of all injured patients.
This includes caring for the injured child before they reach the hospital, during transport, in the emergency department, operating room, pediatric ICU, hospital, during rehabilitation and follow-up care. This type of treatment involves collaboration by a number of professionals including; surgeons, non-surgeon specialists, nurses, therapists, social workers, EMS, transport teams, hospital administration, researchers, injury prevention specialists and many others.
Although not directly involved in providing patient care, the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma at Wake Forest Baptist provided support and direction to the effort to gain Level 1 status as a pediatric trauma center.
“This achievement fulfills one of the first commitments the Childress Institute made upon formation in 2008,” said Richard Childress, president and CEO of Richard Childress Racing and co-founder of the Childress Institute. The institute focuses on saving the lives of children with life-threatening injuries by fostering research, training and public policy about the best approaches to prevention and treatment.
“This accomplishment recognizes the dedication our staff has in providing the most advanced, up-to-date and highest quality of care for your child,” said Marty B. Scott, M.D., vice president of Brenner Children’s Hospital.
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There are five separate categories of verification in the COT's program. Each category has specific criteria that must be met by a facility seeking that level of verification. Each hospital has an on-site review by a team of experienced site reviewers, who use the current Resources for the Optimal Care of the Injured Patient manual as a guideline in conducting the survey.
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