Trauma center gets final clearance

SARASOTA — Sarasota Memorial Hospital, as of July 1, is officially a Level II Trauma Center.

The hospital system, which received final approval from the Florida Department of Health, is now the only trauma program in Sarasota County, according to a statement. The trauma designation means critically injured patients in Sarasota County can be transported to SMH, rather than a trauma center in another community, the release adds. “Earning trauma designation was a tremendous effort that required extraordinary passion, expertise and a highly specialized team to respond around-the-clock to any critical situation,” Sarasota Memorial CEO David Verinder says in a statement.

The trauma program is a $16 million investment over three years, according to the release. It includes specially equipped trauma bays, operating rooms, a trauma intensive care unit, a trauma step-down unit and several specialty-nursing units. The hospital also hired eight trauma surgeons and two orthopedic traumatologists, as well as emergency physicians, subspecialists, trauma and intensive care nurses and rehabilitation specialists.