Emergency Health Services Launches Trauma
Program

A new Provincial Trauma Program will improve the way hospitals deal with trauma patients -- enabling a multidisciplinary team of specialists to intervene more quickly and more effectively to help save lives and reduce injuries.

Under the new program, the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax will be the adult tertiary trauma centre in Nova Scotia. A team of specialists -- including physicians and other health professionals -- are now on call 24 hours a day to respond to trauma emergencies, for example, a patient with major injuries following a car accident.

The emergency room at the QEII is equipped with a dedicated trauma room, and the facility will soon provide a dedicated operating room for trauma emergencies.

"Trauma is the leading cause of death during the first four decades of life," said Dr. Jim Smith, Minister of Health. "Having a program like this extends our ability to deal with life-threatening injuries when response time is critical, and comprehensive care is vital."

The QEII Trauma Service has been designed and implemented by the Department of Health's Emergency Health Services division in co-operation with the QEII Health Sciences Centre. Physicians and nurses across the province will now have easy access to physicians with expertise in trauma care through a toll-free number.

The QEII Trauma Service is led by Dr. Ross Leighton, who also serves as the medical director of the Provincial Trauma Program.

"Hospitals typically have medical specialists spread out around various parts of the facility," said Dr. Leighton. "Now we can co-ordinate these people resources and bring them to the emergency room to meet trauma patients when they arrive."

Marilyn Pike, director of provincial programs for Emergency Health Services, said today's announcement is the first step in creating a comprehensive Provincial Trauma Program.

"This will be an inclusive trauma system -- a program that recognizes the role of rural hospitals in the clinical needs of the trauma patient, as well as the various emergency health services that are available right now in the province," she said.

The Provincial Trauma Program is funded by the Department of Health and is monitored by Emergency Health Services. The estimated cost of this initial phase is $250,000 per year.