Valleywise Health Medical Center has again been verified as a Level I adult trauma center by the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Committee on Trauma. Valleywise Health became Arizona’s first Level I Trauma Center in 1978 and has maintained the gold standard of trauma care ever since.
“Level I Adult Trauma is a signature program for Valleywise Health, along with the nationally recognized Diane & Bruce Halle Arizona Burn Center,” said Dr. Michael White, Chief Clinical Officer. “Patients from across Arizona receive the very best trauma care at Valleywise Health. We have an amazing team of physicians, nurses, support staff and clinical leaders who contributed to the successful reverification. They deserve our highest praise and support.”
Verified trauma centers must meet the essential criteria that ensure trauma care capability and the highest level of institutional performance, as outlined by the ACS Committee on Trauma in its current manual, Resources for Optimal Care of the Injured Patient. Achieving verification means that Valleywise Health has voluntarily met 122 standards outlined by ACS.
Valleywise Health began Arizona’s first nationally verified Level I Trauma Center in its legacy medical center in 1978 and has been recognized for its top-quality trauma care since then. The opening of the new hospital on June 13, 2024, represented a new era in trauma with dramatically increased space needed to care for critically injured patients. While the legacy hospital had only one cramped trauma bay, the new facility has three spacious bays with state-of-the-art technology.
Last year, Valleywise Health had about 1,900 trauma activations for a wide range of injuries, ranging from motor vehicle accidents to gunfire and falls.
“We are very proud to once again be recognized by the American College of Surgeons with reverification,” said Trauma Director Dr. Gaby Iskander. “It reflects the amazing work our trauma teams do every day, 24/7, 365 days a year, to provide rapid, expert care to seriously injured patients.”
There are three levels of ACS trauma center verification, each defined by specific standards that speak to the important roles of the center in serving its community. These standards clarify the care that must be available to the injured patient at the facility, along with other expectations related to research and educational contributions to advance the field and to ensure the availability of highly qualified trauma providers in the future.
The ACS Trauma Verification, Review, and Consultation (VRC) Program helps hospitals to evaluate and improve their trauma care. It provides an objective, external review of a trauma center’s resources and performance. A team of trauma experts completes a site review of the hospital. The team assesses relevant components of the program including their regional role(s), the availability of physical and health human resources, policies, patient care protocols, and the hospital’s quality improvement processes. Of note, patients cared for in ACS-verified trauma centers have a lower risk of death and improved quality of life compared with patients in non-verified centers.