Sunrise now second trauma center

Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2005 | 11:18 a.m.

Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center becomes the second Level 2 trauma center operating in Nevada at noon today, giving ambulance crews and emergency patients an option for quicker medical treatment in some cases.

Hospital officials announced Tuesday that the state had approved the trauma center designation for Sunrise, which is located at 3186 S. Maryland Parkway. Clark County Health District notified ambulance services that trauma cases east of the Las Vegas Strip could be taken to Sunrise after noon today, Sunrise spokeswoman Donna McGraw said.

Sunrise was required by the state to complete a series of training procedures for staff and had to acquire specific pieces of equipment before it could be certified, Sunrise spokesman Rick Plummer said.

Sunrise had completed its staffing and equipment requirements in January.

A Level 2 trauma center is required to have a certain number of surgeons and anesthesiologists on call 24 hours a day, while a Level 1 trauma center must have the same number of surgeons and anesthesiologists, an education program, preventive and outreach programs.

There are 16 specialists, including surgeons, orthopedic specialists and anesthesiologists ready to accept patients at Sunrise round the clock, Plummer said.

"We will never close," Plummer said.

In addition, Sunrise has staff and equipment required for radiology and pathology.

For University Medical Center, the state's only Level 1 trauma center, the only thing that will change is the number of emergency patients, hospital spokeswoman Cheryl Persinger said.

"Obviously, we are not going to receive all the patients we normally do," Persinger said Tuesday.

UMC does not plan any staff reductions as the result of Sunrise opening its doors, Persinger said.

"Right now they are just coming on as Level 2 patient care," Persinger said.

In the past year, UMC has treated 11,683 trauma patients at 1800 W. Charleston Blvd.

UMC has recently received a renewal of its designation as a Level 1 trauma center by the American College of Surgeons, a professional association that verifies the services of centers that volunteer to be reviewed, Persinger said.

UMC first met the Level 1 criteria in 1998.

UMC is the only trauma center in Nevada to have earned the Level 1 designation, which is renewed every three years.

Washoe Medical Center in Reno is the only other Level 2 trauma center in the state.

St. Rose Dominican Hospital's Siena Campus at 3001 St. Rose Parkway in Henderson is also preparing to become a trauma center, although the hospital is not as advanced as Sunrise. St. Rose Dominican would likely become a Level 3 trauma center, meaning it will have a surgeon on call, officials said.