Improvement in Outcome From Trauma Center Care

Abstract

• Survival and death outcomes for patients with blunt injuries treated at one urban hospital were evaluated during a 6-year period of increasing commitment to trauma care, as evidenced by the construction of a resuscitation facility with integrated operating rooms. Patient survival, when controlled for severity mix, showed a trend of improvement during the study period. Improvement in survival outcome was more notable after the opening of the trauma resuscitation facility and among the more severely injured. When data from years 1 and 2 combined were compared with those from years 5 and 6, a statistically significant difference in survival was found, with an average of 13.44 more survivors per 100 patients treated per year with Injury Severity Scores greater than 15. (Arch Surg. 1992;127:333-338)