Two Jackson hospitals pay millions to avoid treating serious trauma patients, records show
Mississippi’s statewide trauma care system is designed to create a network of hospitals capable of treating high-need emergency care patients. But two Jackson hospitals instead pay millions of dollars every year for choosing not to treat serious trauma patients.
The Mississippi State Department of Health annually assess hospitals’ trauma care capacity, ranking hospitals on 1 to 4 scale based on how well-equipped facilities are to handle serious trauma patients.
A Level 1 designation applies, according to health department information, to “comprehensive facilities, capable of treating the entire range of traumatic injuries,” while Level 2 hospitals “generally have the same clinical services as Level 1 Trauma Centers but lack the surgical residency and research capabilities.”
Hospitals designated Level 3 “have the capabilities to resuscitate and treat the majority of trauma injuries but lack dedicated neurosurgical services.” Level 4 hospitals, which make up the majority of hospitals in Mississippi, can stabilize and transfer trauma patients to higher level trauma centers.
Read more: https://mississippitoday.org/2019/09/11/two-jackson-hospitals-pay-millions-to-avoid-treating-serious-trauma-patients-records-show/