Journal Article

Trauma Team Activation at an Emergency Department

Lam, Sze Jia, Chantal Lim, Shiun-hwa, Lau, Yee Lyn Corinne, Attal, Hersh, Lee, Chee Meng, Venugopal, Kuhan, Tan, Weei Jang Daniel, Pek, Jen Heng

2026

Overview

AimMultidisciplinary trauma teams are routinely activated for patients with serious injuries in the emergency department (ED). We aim to describe the characteristics of patients requiring trauma team activation (TTA) at a level two trauma centre.Materials and MethodsA retrospective review of a single centre’s trauma registry data was performed. Information on demographics, circumstances of trauma, details of injury, and clinical progress was collected and analysed.ResultsAmong 77,132 trauma cases, 496 (0.6%) required TTA. On average, one TTA occurred every three days. The median age was 38 years [interquartile range (IQR), 28-54 years], and 367 (74.0%) were male. The primary reason for TTA was the mechanism of injury (n=418, 84.3%). Blunt injuries occurred in 453 (91.3%) patients and vehicular accidents were the most common mechanism (n=342, 69.0%). The median injury severity score was 1 (IQR: 0-9). Twenty patients (4.0%) required emergency surgery. The overall mortality was 60 (12.1%), with 49 patients (9.9%) dying in the ED. Four hundred and one patients (80.8%) were admitted to the hospital; the median length of stay was 2 days (IQR 1-5 days).ConclusionTTA was an uncommon event; when it occurred, patients generally had low injury severity and low utilisation of healthcare resources. Revision of the activation criteria and a tiered trauma-team or expedited-care approach may help achieve a balance between timely, coordinated care and the justified, optimal deployment of personnel.

• Publisher: Galenos Publishing House,Emergency Medicine Physicians’ Association of Turkey
• Subject: Blood pressure / emergency department / Emergency medical care / Heart rate / Hospitals / Injuries / Intubation / multi-disciplinary / Ostomy / Patients / Statistical analysis / Surgeons / Trauma