Franciscan Health Indianapolis has been verified as a Level III trauma center by the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Committee on Trauma.
Trauma program leaders at Franciscan Health Indianapolis have been working on verification for the past three years. The hospital applied to the State of Indiana for trauma center status in February 2020, and it was designated as a provisional Level III trauma center in May 2020.
Trauma System News asked Christy Claborn, trauma program manager, whether there was anything about the verification process that surprised her.
“The thing that surprised us the most was how comprehensive the consultation visit was and how that helped set us up for a successful verification visit,” she said. “Everything was reviewed during the consultation, and we received lots of constructive feedback on how to have a successful visit.”
Franciscan Health Indianapolis is the only Level III trauma center in Marion County, which contains Indianapolis.
According to the Indiana Department of Health, the county also has three adult Level I trauma centers (Ascension St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital, Eskenazi Health, and IU Health Methodist Hospital), one pediatric Level I trauma center (Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health) and one provisional pediatric Level I trauma center (Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital – Ascension St. Vincent).
“Indiana is expanding trauma care throughout the state, so this is a public health initiative,” Claborn said. “We want to make sure we’re taking care of the whole patient, not just in time of illness, but in time of injury as well. That’s part of our core Franciscan mission and values.”