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OFFICIAL: BUDGET CUTS SHOULDN’T HINDER TRAUMA SYSTEM

By Larry Fugate/SPECIAL TO THE COMMERCIAL
Saturday, November 21, 2009 10:13 PM CST

Budget cuts ordered by Gov. Mike Beebe because of declining state revenues should not delay the full implementation of the state’s trauma system, according to Dr. Michael Sutherland, medical director of trauma services at Jefferson Regional Medical Center.

Dr. Michael Sutherland

No single area of the program was impacted enough by the cuts ordered last month to slow the implementation, Sutherland told a civic group recently, adding the system’s goals remain unchanged — reducing the number of deaths and lessening the impact of disabilities from trauma.

The state Department of Health was ordered to cut its budget $3.63 million, including money that would have been spent on the trauma system’s emergency services and salary for trauma system staffers. Monies to establish the trauma system come from an increase in tobacco taxes authorized by the General Assembly.

The system, once fully established, is projected to save 500 lives annually and reduce the number of individuals disabled by trauma, ranging from traffic accidents, gunshots and industrial accidents.

Trauma is the top cause for loss of life and disabilities for those between age 1 and 34, the surgeon said, noting Arkansas has the third highest number of motor vehicle accident deaths in the nation. Between 2000 and 2005, there were 1,131 people who died as a direct result of trauma in Southeast Arkansas.

Two little Rock hospitals, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children’s Hospital, will be Level 1 trauma centers under the system, while JRMC will be a Level 2 hospital.

Hospitals in Chico, Bradley, Drew, Desha and Arkansas counties will provide Level 4 services, Sutherland added, with the possible exception of Ashley County Medical Center, which is seeking Level 3 status.

The level or status of the hospitals in the trauma system is established by the facilities and personnel available around the clock, Sutherland explained.

A regional board will evaluate the benefits provided by each hospital in the state under the trauma system, he added, with data collected on the regional level being utilized to measure services provided in the state, then at the national level.

“Every trauma center reports to the same place … with the end result of providing better care to our patients,” Sutherland said.

He praised Carla Jackson, a veteran registered nurse who is JRMC’s trauma coordinator, for her work in training nurses to meet standards of the local trauma center.

A state-wide center will be established to coordinate emergency services when the trauma system is fully operational, Sutherland noted.

Sutherland was the featured speaker at the Pine Bluff Rotary Club Tuesday.

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