WMCHealth’s Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital Awarded Reverification of Level I Trauma Center Status

VALHALLA, NY – April 12, 2018 – Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children's Hospital recently received reverification of the hospitals' Level I trauma statuses – the highest level awarded by the Committee on Trauma of the American College of Surgeons – for both its adult and pediatric trauma centers.

Both members of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children's Hospital are the only Level I trauma center in the Hudson Valley to serve both adult and pediatric patients. The two WMCHealth facilities care for the most severely injured adults and children in the region and beyond and are among the premier providers of Level I trauma care nationally.

"We are proud to receive this prestigious reverification of our Regional Level I trauma designation from the American College of Surgeons for Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children's Hospital," said Rifat Latifi, MD, Director of Surgery and Chief of General Surgery at WMCHealth. "Our trauma program continues to grow academically, clinically and across the region with the expertise of adult and pediatric trauma surgeons who work with a multi-disciplinary team to provide the highest quality lifesaving care to Hudson Valley patients when they need it most."

The trauma teams at Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children's Hospital include trauma and critical care-trained surgeons, as well as emergency medicine, neurosurgery, orthopedics, anesthesiology, radiology, nursing, blood bank, rehabilitation and operating room teams.

Almost 1,500 adults and 350 children are cared for each year, with more than 900 trauma activations annually. The vast majority of cases involve blunt trauma, though patients also receive multidisciplinary care for penetrating and thermal injuries, among others.

In New York State, trauma centers are categorized as regional trauma centers, the highest designation serving the highest acuity of patients, or area trauma centers. Trauma centers are assessed and undergo an extensive review process every three years to earn and maintain the Level I trauma designation. Criteria for Level I trauma verification status includes academic research, outreach and injury prevention efforts. The reverification review for the Valhalla campus showed exemplary performance, with zero deficiencies reported.

In addition to the Level I adult and pediatric trauma centers in Valhalla, WMCHealth is also home to the Hudson Valley's first and only American College of Surgeons designated Level II trauma Center at MidHudson Regional Hospital in Poughkeepsie. All three hospitals also provide trauma care in a telemedicine format, offering remote trauma assistance to patients at other hospitals – including network affiliates in Kingston and Margaretville – when time is of the essence and distance is a barrier to immediate advanced level trauma care. WMCHealth also offers telemedicine in its STAT mobile ICU ambulances to help provide the most immediate care to patients while en route to the hospital.

Members of Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children's Hospital's multidisciplinary adult and pediatric trauma teams.