Our emergency medicine residency program offers an unparalleled trauma experience, setting us apart from other programs both regionally and nationally. Due to our exceptionally high volume of trauma cases, we are one of the few centers in the nation with a dedicated “Trauma Admitting” area, with the only other in our region being Maryland Shock Trauma. Here, the most critical trauma patients receive immediate resuscitation from our Emergency Medicine and Surgical residents with the assistance of our specialized traumatologists.
Our program boasts more trauma activations (resuscitation requiring a traumatologist) than all three Philadelphia Level 1 trauma centers combined! Consequently, we lead the region in neurotrauma, ortho trauma, and overall trauma admissions. As the only ACS Level 1 trauma center serving all of Southern New Jersey, our residents encounter a diverse and intense caseload of both penetrating and non-penetrating trauma that is unmatched in the Philadelphia region and beyond.
Unlike other programs where all trauma cases are mixed with other acute care patients, we concentrate our most critical trauma patients requiring immediate resuscitation in a single, focused environment in a separate area of the ED titled, “Trauma Admitting.” Approximately 10% of Cooper’s trauma patients are seen in this area
Cooper EM residents spend 1.5 blocks months during PGY2 year and 1 block during PGY3 year on their trauma rotations in “Trauma Admitting.” During this rotation they learn the essential skill sets needed to perform trauma resuscitations and life-saving procedures such as chest tubes, central lines and thoracotomies. When not on their assigned trauma rotations our residents still get plenty of exposure to the trauma admitting area, as the PGY2 and PGY3 EM residents working regular ED shifts respond to all trauma alerts in “Trauma Admitting” to manage airways and assist with additional procedures.
The remaining 90% of trauma patients seen at Cooper are evaluated in the “Main ED,” encompassing approximately 14-15% of our overall ED volume. The initial evaluation and treatment of these patients are managed entirely by the EM team. One quarter of these patients are later admitted to the trauma service for further management, demonstrating the high acuity of trauma experienced by the patients seen on the “Main ED” side.
This separation of trauma volume between “Trauma Admitting” and the “Main ED” allows us to continue to focus on managing the sickest patients in the ED (trauma or otherwise) while maintaining ED throughput of all patients in the ED. It also gives our residents the opportunity to manage trauma patients in multiple settings, both with and without the support of traumatologists in initial management, allowing for an educational experience that reflects the variation in how trauma patients are managed in EDs throughout the US.
Join us to experience a trauma training environment that rivals only a few locations in the country, ensuring you develop unparalleled expertise in emergency medicine.