The Wrangell hospital board voted 4-0 Sept. 18 to pursue a Level IV trauma certification for the Wrangell Medical Center.
The certification would establish the medical center as a primary care giver for traumatic injuries, meaning life-saving care could be available to trauma victims immediately, according to the American College of Surgeons and hospital officials. For victims themselves, it could mean the difference between flying to Wrangell and having to make the sometimes-perilous trip to Ketchikan instead.
That issue was on the mind of board member Barbara Conine, who has worked air taxis in medical emergency situations.
“When I was in air taxi we had to go out and bring people out of the bush,” she said. “I can’t tell you how many times it was a question of whether we had enough fuel, or we should take them straight to Ketchikan because the level of care we needed wasn’t available here.”
Laura Salard, a member of the hospital’s trauma team leading the push for the certification, spoke in favor of pursuing the certification at the regular hospital board meeting, saying the certification could open doors beyond the one to the emergency room.
“The educational opportunities are really just awesome,” she said. “Regardless, it’s a win-win.”
Many of the capital and personnel, requirements for obtaining the certification are already in place, Salard said.
“It’s a chance for everyone to pull together,” she said.
The certification could also open up the possibility of additional funding opportunities from the State of Alaska at some point in the future, though that’s far from guaranteed, Salard said.
The board also voted 5-0 to add a brief explanatory note to the Wrangell Medical Center by-laws explaining a discrepancy between the by-laws, which refer to the hospital’s executive as a CEO and borough code, which refers to the executive as an administrator. The borough assembly tabled the by-laws at its Sept. 10 meeting to allow the hospital board to explain the difference.
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