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Section of Trauma, Critical Care and Emergency Surgery
Tucson's Level 1 Trauma System is one of
the most highly rated in the country. It ranks number one among
university trauma centers in the nation in several key outcomes,
including patient survival, low cost and shorter lengths of stay.
The trauma program at University
Medical Center has a trauma surgeon immediately available
24 hours a day. The trauma program cares for approximately 4,500
injured patients per year from Tucson, Southern Arizona, western
New Mexico and northern Mexico.
What is trauma?
Trauma means serious injury. It includes such injuries as bone
fractures, internal bleeding, and brain injuries.
Trauma is most frequently due to car crashes, falls, and violence.
What is a trauma center?
A trauma center
is a highly-organized hospital program for the immediate treatment
of the seriously
injured. The program’s organization recognizes that the
greatest enemy of a person who is seriously injured is time.
The trauma team remains poised for immediate response 24 hours
a day, every day. The team is led by a trauma surgeon, and includes
additional surgeons, emergency medicine physicians, trauma nurses,
and therapists. This team is activated about eight times a day.
In addition to the trauma team, the trauma
center at UMC includes:
- a special trauma resuscitation unit within
the Emergency Department
- fully-staffed operating rooms immediately
available
- a surgical intensive care unit
- a wide range of on-call specialists,
including orthopedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, pediatric intensivists,
etc.
- priority status for lab work and x-rays
- an injury research
program
- injury prevention programs
Links of Interest:
Peter M. Rhee, MD, MPH
Chief, Section of Trauma, Critical Care and Emergency Surgery
Professor of Surgery
Arizona Health
Sciences Center
Department of Surgery
1501 N. Campbell Avenue, Rm. 5411
PO Box 245063
Tucson, AZ 85724-5063
Office Phone: (520) 626-1988
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