Valley Hospital Upgrades To Treat Trauma Patients

Valley Hospital and Medical Center recently received its Level III trauma center designation from the state, but most accident victims probably won’t know the difference.

The hospital beefed up its capacity to deal with trauma situations - injuries that often involve broken bones or blood loss, such as those caused by auto accidents or severe wounds.

But most critically injured patients will still end up at one of the downtown medical centers, providing there’s enough time to get them there. If not, the patients might be taken to Valley Hospital to be stabilized until they can be transported to either Sacred Heart Medical Center or Deaconess Medical Center, which share a Level II trauma designation.

“We’ve certainly done a lot of updating, but I don’t see that it’s going to impact the flow of patients,” said Lou Dye, manager of Valley Hospital’s emergency department.

“We don’t see many trauma patients now, but when we do we’ll be more prepared.”

Dye said Valley Hospital currently treats about 20 trauma patients a month.

Spokeswoman Priscilla Gilkey said trauma patients staying at Valley Hospital typically are those suffering from broken bones, spinal cord damage or other skeletal injuries.

Some of the most important new equipment purchases, though, are those designed to help stabilize critically-injured patients. While those people wouldn’t stay at Valley Hospital, without immediate treatment they may not survive the trip downtown.

Dye said one of those additions is a fluid infusion warmer, which is used on patients experiencing severe blood loss. Other new devices include special mobile versions of life-sign monitors. Those allow trauma patients to be moved from the emergency room to another part of the hospital without being disconnected from monitors.

Hospital staff members have received or now are getting special training. All nurses have been certified to work in trauma situations, and doctors are currently taking intensive emergency life support classes. Dye said the hospital plans to have doctors take refresher classes every four years.

Valley Hospital’s Level III designation is part of a new statewide system designed to make sure trauma patients requiring different levels of care end up at a hospital capable of treating them.

Sacred Heart and Deaconess received a Level II designation, the highest in Eastern Washington. Only Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, a research hospital, is designated Level I.

Gail Finley Rarey, of the Washington State Department of Health’s Emergency Medical and Trauma Prevention office, said a lower designation doesn’t imply lower-quality care.

“It reflects the role a facility plays in committing resources,” she said. “We want to make sure patients get to … the specialized services that they need.”

, DataTimes