Trauma Centers Support Coastal Communities With Vital Care July 6, 2021 The Oregon Health Authority recently conducted recertification surveys of the Level IV trauma centers located at Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital and Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital. Each center will be certified for another three years and additional personnel resources will be allocated to support program growth, according to Lesley Ogden, MD, CEO of both hospitals. “In our small communities served by critical access hospitals, it is impressive that we voluntarily undergo these trauma surveys and abide by the same rules as top-tier hospitals to make sure we give the best trauma care we can,” said Dr. Ogden. “I wish to publicly praise our teams who guided the surveyors through comprehensive chart reviews, led a virtual tour of the facilities, and thoroughly answered questions about trauma patient documentation, data collection and process improvement.” In Newport, the trauma team includes Pamela Holbrook, RN, trauma coordinator/ registrar; Joshua Cook, DO, trauma medical director; and the entire Emergency Department staff. In Lincoln City, the trauma team includes Karla Rutherford, RN, trauma registrar; Rick Rhoton, trauma coordinator and Emergency Department manager; Steven Andescavage, DO, trauma medical director/Emergency Department medical director; as well as the entire Emergency Department staff. “Many, many kudos to my staff at both hospitals for building and maintaining quality trauma programs,” Dr. Ogden said. “Our communities are safer and healthier because of their stellar efforts.” According to the OHA website, the role of the Level IV trauma center is to resuscitate and stabilize severely injured patients, both adult and pediatric, before transfer to a higher-level trauma system hospital. This may involve surgical intervention and life-saving maneuvers, which mean the Level IV trauma center must have physicians and staff available at all hours of the day and all appropriate equipment and diagnostic capabilities to resuscitate severely injured patients. In Oregon, trauma centers are identified as being Level I, II, III or IV, with Levels I and II offering the highest level of care. The Level II trauma center closest to Lincoln County is Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis – part of the nonprofit Samaritan Health Services that serves Benton, Lincoln and Linn counties. The only two Level I trauma centers in the state are in Portland (Legacy Emanuel and OHSU).
