VCU Division of Trauma celebrates national verification as a Level I trauma center

By Malorie Burkett

Being prepared to provide care 24 hours a day, seven days a week; handling the most serious trauma cases for adults and children; and demonstrating high standards for trauma care, research and education are just some of the distinct qualities and services individuals can expect from Central Virginia’s only Level I trauma center.

And its most recent accomplishment – receiving national verification as a Level I trauma center by the American College of Surgeons’ Committee on Trauma - has affirmed the quality of care and services provided by the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center’s Division of Trauma and Trauma program.

The achievement recognizes the VCU Medical Center’s dedication to providing optimal care for injured patients and its demonstrated exceptional competence in a wide variety of specialty areas, including teaching and research.

“This is the highest level of verification trauma centers can receive,” said Rao Ivatury, M.D., chair of the Department of Surgery’s Division of Trauma, Critical Care and Emergency General Surgery. “This verification is a true reflection of our continuing dedication to providing exceptional trauma care for injured patients.”

To celebrate this achievement, the VCU Division of Trauma held a reception in honor of the trauma center, its healthcare professionals and staff who contribute to the day-to-day operations of the facility.

Ivatury and Nancy Martin, R.N., director of the trauma program, hosted the event, which was held at the Richard T. Robertson Alumni House on VCU’s Monroe Park Campus.

VCU President Eugene P. Trani, Ph.D., thanked the trauma center staff members for their dedication and commitment to serving all patients who have come through their doors, including those high-profile patients like the 2002 Ashland sniper victim and NASCAR driver Jerry Nadeau.

In addition, Ivatury and Martin presented a plaque to John Duval, CEO of MCV Hospitals, and thanked Duval for his leadership and encouragement.

Only 41 centers in the nation have received verification as Level I adult and pediatric trauma centers. The verification process critically reviews the quality of care at every level, including pre-hospital, emergency department in-hospital and rehabilitation phases. 

The ACS verification and consultation program is designed to assist hospitals in the evaluation and improvement of trauma care and to provide information regarding institutional capability, performance and system development to aid those who are responsible for developing and maintaining these systems.

The VCU Medical Center is one of five Level I trauma centers in the state and was the first facility in Virginia to receive trauma designation, which the state began issuing in 1981. VCU joins Inova Fairfax Hospital in Northern Virginia to become the only two nationally verified trauma centers in Virginia. Both centers are verified as Level I for adult and pediatric trauma.

The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and to improve the care of the surgical patient. The College has more than 70,000 members, and it is the largest organization of surgeons in the world.