Trauma Center team members attend to a patient earlier this week. Since it opened 10 years ago, more than 33,000 people have been treated at the Trauma Center. (photo by Neil Brake)
Trauma Center celebrates a decade of saving lives
On Wednesday the Vanderbilt Trauma Center celebrated its 10-year anniversary.
The acute care unit, located on 10 North in Vanderbilt University Hospital, opened on Aug. 13, 1998, with then Nashville Mayor Phil Bredesen on hand to help cut the ribbon.
Since its opening, the Trauma Center has treated a broadly diverse patient population from all walks of life, and has also cared for highly visible patients such as country music superstars, pro football players and elected officials on several occasions.
As the region’s only provider of Level 1 trauma care, the Vanderbilt Trauma Center’s staff of 16 physicians, 108 nurses and 42 staff has treated more than 33,000 acutely ill patients since the unit’s opening.
Since 1998 the Trauma Center’s number of annual admissions has risen from 2,000 to nearly 4,000 per year. During this same period, more than 16,000 motor vehicle accident victims, 3,100 gunshot victims and 5,000 uninsured Middle Tennesseans have been treated by Trauma Center staff.
In October, House Organ will take an in-depth look at the Trauma Center and its history.