DOHA: Within five years of the Trauma Center’s establishment, Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) had recorded a significant reduction in deaths among severely injured patients, says a senior official.
The centre has also helped to reduce the length of hospital stay for trauma patients, according to Dr. Hassan Al Thani, Head of Trauma and Vascular Surgery at HMC.
Multi-disciplinary staff from across Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) recently gathered to celebrate the seventh anniversary of the Trauma Center at Hamad General Hospital (HGH) and to participate in the third Trauma Multidisciplinary Critical Care Educational Day.
The event highlighted the successes of the Trauma Center since its establishment in 2007, and the importance of teamwork among multi-disciplinary professionals providing care to severely injured patients. Qatar is one of the first countries outside the United States to have established a complete specialist trauma system.
“In 2006, HMC’s leadership decided to transform HGH into a Level 1 Trauma Center due to a perceived need to change the way severely injured patients were cared for,” said Al Thani.
“Our vision is to have a national trauma system with a well-distributed statewide structure of acute care hospitals and other facilities as members of a system that will become a model for all trauma centers across the Middle East and beyond,” he added.
Dr Ahmad Zarour, HMC’s Director of Trauma Critical Care Unit was master of ceremony at the anniversary celebration. Congratulatory speeches were made by Dr Yousuf Al Maslamani, Medical Director, HGH, David Astley, Chief of Tertiary Hospitals Group, HMC, Colene Daniel, Chief Executive Director, HGH and Deputy Chief of Tertiary Hospitals Group and Dr Mohamed El Tawil, Assistant Director for Graduate Medical Education at HMC’s Department of Medical Education.
Nel Balquin, a patient who was treated under the transformed trauma system for severe injuries he sustained from being hit by a car as a pedestrian, also spoke at the event to thank the multi-disciplinary trauma team for not giving up on their efforts to treat and rehabilitate him until he was able to walk again. HMC’s Trauma Center has begun the process of seeking Level 1 Trauma Distinction from Accreditation Canada International.
The Peninsula
