BGH celebrates trauma center designation
(Photo by CAROLINE LOBSINGER) Bonner General Hospital staff accept the certification declaring the hospital a Level IV trauma center. Pictured, from left, are Dr. Kenneth Gramyk, BGH Emergency Department medical director; Mike Taylor, BGH Emergency Department nurse manager; Chris Way, chief officer of the Kootenai County EMS System, who presented the award; Misty Robertson, BGH chief nursing officer; and John Hennessy, BGH CFO.
(Courtesy photo) Bonner General Health staff celebrate the hospital's designation as a Level IV trauma center. Pictured are Debbie Frank, BGH staffing coordinator; John Hennessy, BGH CFO; Misty Robertson, BGH chief nursing officer; Dr. Kenneth Gramyk, BGH Emergency Department medical director; Mike Taylor, BGH Emergency Department nurse manager; and Chris Way, chief officer of the Kootenai County EMS System, who presented the award.
Bonner General Health staff recently gathered to formally accept the hospital’s designation as a Level IV trauma center by the Idaho Time Sensitive Emergency Council of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. The hospital was notified Feb. 14, it had been selected as the fourth critical access hospital in the state of Idaho to become designated as a Level IV trauma center.
The council is a result of 2014 legislation that approved and funded a plan to develop a statewide system of care that includes trauma, stroke, and heart attack designations for hospitals. Trauma, stroke, and “heart attacks” are the top three causes of death in Idaho. The purpose of these systems of care is to reduce the time to reach healthcare intervention for patients experiencing time sensitive emergencies. Decreasing this time from onset to treatment is important to patient health outcomes and decreased mortality rates. Bonner General Health Emergency Department collaborates with prehospital partners who can activate the specially trained trauma response team in the Emergency Department before the patient even arrives at the hospital.
There are special requirements that must be met to be designated as a Level IV trauma center, including strenuous quality monitoring and extensive staff training and certifications. Bonner General Health was surveyed by a three-member team on Jan. 13. The survey team evaluated all aspects of trauma care including staff and physician trauma training levels, trauma equipment, facilities, and supplies on hand, and toured the emergency department, laboratory, blood bank, surgical services, intensive care unit, and diagnostic imaging departments. The survey team identified zero deficiencies and recommended that Bonner General Health be designated a Level IV trauma center for a period of three years.