Title
Authorizing the joint City Council Committees on Public Safety and Health and Human Service to hold a hearing investigating the mapping out of trauma centers across the city and how they are selected when transporting shooting victims; and inviting the House Democratic Policy Committee and Senate Democratic Policy Committee to participate in these hearings.
Body
WHEREAS, In Philadelphia, a trauma patient, meaning someone who has sustained a life-threatening bodily injury, such as a gunshot wound, is transported to a hospital that is designated as a trauma center; and
WHEREAS, Trauma centers have the staff, services and equipment needed to care for those with life-threatening bodily injuries and are staffed by trauma teams 24 hours a day, including surgeons and neurosurgeons; and
WHEREAS, The organization responsible for accrediting trauma centers is the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation. The Foundation has categorized trauma centers into four levels; and
WHEREAS, Level I Trauma Centers are authorized to treat those most in need of critical emergency care. They require trauma research, a surgical residency program and an annual 600 major trauma patients per year; and
WHEREAS, In Philadelphia, Level I trauma centers include: Einstein Medical Center, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, Temple University Hospital, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital; and
WHEREAS, The adequate mapping out of trauma center locations, when responding to a trauma patient, has an impact on whether the patient receives treatment earlier rather than later. When dealing with critical injuries, transportation to a trauma center that is not closest to where the patient is being transported from could jeopardize the patient's life; and
WHEREAS, On Tuesday, September 27, 2022, a 14-year-old was shot and killed in front of Roxborough Highschool. The student was transported from Roxborough ...
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