Parkland’s trauma nurse clinician program was nation’s first
Innovative program is celebrating 26th anniversary
Since the mid-1980s, Parkland Health & Hospital System has been at the forefront of trauma care. Parkland was one of the first two trauma centers reviewed by the American College of Surgeons for trauma center verification in November 1987, and received the official notice of verification as a level one trauma center in March 1988.
Parkland has led many initiatives to improve trauma systems and trauma patient outcomes through research, injury prevention and outreach education. Among the innovations Parkland pioneered in trauma care has been the implementation of the trauma nurse clinician program which focuses on patient care coordination from the time they arrive in the trauma center through hospital discharge and follow-up care.
The Parkland Trauma Nurse Clinician Program was presented at a podium presentation at the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma in 1995 by Jorie Klein, RN, Director of Trauma at Parkland. Today, more than 92 trauma centers across the country model Parkland’s trauma nurse clinician program. It has been introduced and implemented in various models in Israel, Australia, Germany and several other countries.
Celebrating the program’s 26th anniversary (1992 – 2018), Parkland’s trauma nurse clinicians provide excellence in trauma resuscitation and clinical management, as well as trauma performance improvement, registry data management, injury prevention and outreach. These highly-skilled nurses are engaged in hospital care oversight and coordination of care. Each team of trauma nurse clinicians provides oversight for approximately 1,800 patients annually.
“This program is a stellar example of how Parkland’s trauma nurses provide high quality compassionate care not only for patients, but for their families as well,” said Karen Watts, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, Parkland’s Executive Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer. “Their dedication goes beyond the walls of the trauma center and is one of the reasons this program is a model for similar programs across the country and beyond.”
In the nearly three decades since the trauma nurse clinician program began, the program has grown to include 24 nurses providing 24/7 care in The Rees-Jones Trauma Center at Parkland.
“In 1996, the trauma nurse clinicians became the primary staff assigned to the trauma bays and have direct responsibility for trauma patient resuscitation, resource management, system management and overall communication,” Klein said. “The trauma nurse clinicians check on their trauma patients every day during their hospitalization, in all units. They are the advocates for the patients and their families.”
Della Johnson, RN, a trauma nurse service manager, has worked in trauma services since 2006.
“What we do makes a difference in the lives of our patients. We don’t care if you’re homeless or if you have the best insurance,” Johnson said. “What we care about is making sure that each of our patients receives high quality care and that we get them on the road to recovery.”
Recovery involves meeting the patient’s clinical and psychosocial needs, and family integration in care in most cases. Recovery is often long, but Johnson said there are immeasurable rewards when the destination is reached.
Johnson recalled one patient who was critically injured in a car crash. “The patient wasn’t wearing their seatbelt correctly and sustained major injuries,” Johnson said, noting that she didn’t know if the patient would be able to walk again. “Members of the trauma team were with the patient every day until they were transferred to another facility.”
Smiling, Johnson shared recent good news. “We heard from that patient and they’re coming back to thank us for the trauma care we provided. And the patient will be walking in to see us.”
The Rees-Jones Trauma Center at Parkland is home to internationally renowned experts. These doctors and nurses deliver the highest quality critical care while also serving as educators and researchers. They train the next generation of trauma doctors and discover new and better ways to save lives in situations when every second counts. More than 7,500 injured patients are admitted for care at Parkland Memorial Hospital every year. Trauma centers all over the world look to Parkland for answers on the toughest cases.
For more information about Parkland, please visit our website at www.parklandhospital.com
Back