GARY | The sickest, most injured patients in Northwest Indiana no longer will be transported out of state or out of the area for immediate care.
The State of Indiana EMS Commission this week approved a recommendation by State Health Commissioner Dr. William VanNess to grant approval for an "in process" designation allowing Methodist Hospital Northlake campus in Gary to serve as a Level III trauma center, said Steven Hatfield, public information specialist for the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.
"Most hospitals are already operating at that level," he said. "This just solidifies that."
The designation means the hospital can offer heightened care, while it completes the process for full Level III designation. No other Northwest Indiana hospital holds a trauma designation.
Hospital officials issued a statement Friday.
"Methodist Hospitals is aware of the action taken by the State of Indiana EMS Commission yesterday, but we have yet to receive official written notification of our approval, and therefore we do not have an announcement at this time," stated Dr. Michael Davenport, president and interim CEO of Methodist Hospitals.
"However, we expect to have an announcement on this matter in the near future," he stated. "We have been working diligently to become a Level III trauma center, and we are committed to becoming the first Level III trauma center in Northwest Indiana in order to provide an unprecedented level of trauma care to the members of our Northwest Indiana community."
A Level III designation is the lowest tier of care for trauma centers.
"Generally, they have greater staffing requirements and greater equipment requirements than a typical hospital ED (emergency department)," said Art Logsdon, assistant commissioner for the state health and human services commission.
The Level III designation, for example, requires a surgeon to be available bedside within 30 minutes of a patient's arrival, he said.
"It really is very big news for the region," Logsdon said. "The fact that Northlake is now a Level III trauma center means that, under Indiana law, they are now fully capable of accepting trauma patients."
The Gary hospital has long received the most seriously injured patients in the area, he said.
Ten Indiana hospitals are in the process of becoming trauma centers. They have two years after being labeled "in process" to become fully fledged and verified by the American Council of Surgeons, the organization authorized to make that determination, Logsdon said.
Logsdon expects next week the state will notify all EMS providers in Northwest Indiana about the Gary hospital's Level III trauma center designation.