Access to Trauma Centers in the United States

CONTEXT Previous studies have reported that the number and distribution of trauma centers are uneven across states, suggesting large differences in access to trauma center care. OBJECTIVE To estimate the proportion of US residents having access to trauma centers within 45 and 60 minutes. DESIGN AND...

Full description

Saved in:

Bibliographic Details
Published in:	JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association Vol. 293; no. 21; pp. 2626 - 2633
Main Authors:	Branas, Charles C, MacKenzie, Ellen J, Williams, Justin C, Schwab, C. William, Teter, Harry M, Flanigan, Marie C, Blatt, Alan J, ReVelle, Charles S
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Chicago, IL American Medical Association 01-06-2005
Subjects:	Air Ambulances - supply & distribution Ambulances - supply & distribution Biological and medical sciences Critical care Cross-Sectional Studies General aspects Geography Health care access Health care delivery Health Services Accessibility - statistics & numerical data Hospital Shared Services Humans Medical sciences Regional Medical Programs Resource Allocation Rural Population Time Factors Transportation of Patients Trauma centers Trauma Centers - supply & distribution United States Urban Population United States North America America United States > US Medicine Center Accessibility Trauma
Online Access:	Get full text
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!

Description
Summary:	CONTEXT Previous studies have reported that the number and distribution of trauma centers are uneven across states, suggesting large differences in access to trauma center care. OBJECTIVE To estimate the proportion of US residents having access to trauma centers within 45 and 60 minutes. DESIGN AND SETTING Cross-sectional study using data from 2 national databases as part of the Trauma Resource Allocation Model for Ambulances and Hospitals (TRAMAH) project. Trauma centers, base helipads, and block group population were counted for all 50 states and the District of Columbia as of January 2005. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Percentages of national, regional, and state populations having access to all 703 level I, II, and III trauma centers in the United States by either ground ambulance or helicopter within 45 and 60 minutes. RESULTS An estimated 69.2% and 84.1% of all US residents had access to a level I or II trauma center within 45 and 60 minutes, respectively. The 46.7 million Americans who had no access within an hour lived mostly in rural areas, whereas the 42.8 million Americans who had access to 20 or more level I or II trauma centers within an hour lived mostly in urban areas. Within 45 and 60 minutes, respectively, 26.7% and 27.7% of US residents had access to level I or II trauma centers by helicopter only and 1.9% and 3.1% of US residents had access to level I or II centers only from trauma centers or base helipads outside their home states. CONCLUSION Selecting trauma centers based on geographic need, appropriately locating medical helicopter bases, and establishing formal agreements for sharing trauma care resources across states should be considered to improve access to trauma care in the United States.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	0098-7484 1538-3598
DOI:	10.1001/jama.293.21.2626