W. Roy Smythe, MD, Chairman of
the Department of Surgery
“Before the first injured patient arrived,
there were more than 20 surgeons, in
addition to the emergency room and
anesthesia staff and the countless support
personnel, ready and waiting in the Scott
& White emergency room. There were five
or six fully staffed, fully equipped trauma
bays ready and waiting. To a casual
observer, it might have looked chaotic, but
everyone was actually calm and
professional. It felt as if we had done this
several times before—maybe even the day
before—even though that was obviously
not the case.
“The response and the way that the
patients were dealt with that day bring
home two important points: One, the
modern trauma system, developed by the
American College of Surgeons, and the
highest level centers like ours—Level I
trauma centers—have saved tens if not
hundreds of thousands of lives due to
preparation, readiness and a systematic
approach to these patients. Two, it helps
if those who staff your Level I trauma
center are exceptional. Ours are. We are
the only Level I trauma center between
Austin and Dallas. That makes us ‘the
center’ for Central Texas. This hopefully
demonstrates to those whom we serve that
sw.org | Winter 10 THE CATALYST
17