(St. Louis) - Saint Louis University Hospital has been re-certified as a Level I Trauma Center by the Illinois Department of Public Health. The hospital operates the only St. Louis area Level I Trauma Center certified by both Missouri and Illinois and treats more than 2,000 patients a year.
Approximately 750 of the 2000 most serious accident and injury cases the hospital treats each year are from an approximate 200-mile area in central and southern Illinois. The hospital also offers coverage for some communities that do not have surgical or emergency treatment services available on a 24-hour basis.
Around the clock, the Saint Louis University Hospital trauma center provides the metropolitan area with access to specialists in emergency medicine, trauma surgery, orthopedic surgery, plastic surgery, neurosurgery, cardiothoracic surgery, radiology, anesthesiology, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, vascular surgery and urologic surgery.
Trauma care requires a real commitment by the hospital and medical staff, said Marc J. Shapiro, MD, medical director of the Trauma Center at Saint Louis University Hospital and Saint Louis University School of Medicine professor of surgery and anesthesiology. "We see the very sick, and fortunately we are able to provide them with high-quality care.
"Some of our patients are twice as ill as those seen at some other trauma centers similar to ours."
The hospital must meet stringent standards and guidelines to be certified by the state of Illinois according to Pam Golden, RN, MSN, trauma program manager at Saint Louis University Hospital.
"Illinois has very strict requirements that a hospital must meet," Golden said. "Meeting these requirements is an important part of our commitment to medical excellence."
Saint Louis University Hospital is part of the Tenet Healthcare Saint Louis system. The 356-bed facility is the teaching hospital for Saint Louis University School of Medicine and has been ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of America's Best Hospitals in 12 of 17 medical specialties. Its standing as an academic medical center puts it among those at the forefront in developing and providing some of the latest medical treatment and procedures.
