Tampa General Hospital’s state-designated Level 1 Trauma Center, led by USF Health physicians, is the first and only one in Florida to earn national recognition from the American College of Surgeons for the quality of both adult and pediatric trauma care.

The hospital’s partnership with the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine was critical for ACS verification of the trauma center.  The center had to demonstrate it met patient care, research and education criteria – all required to fulfill an academic medical center’s mission — to ensure optimal trauma care capability and performance in serving both adults and children. 

The verification followed an extensive review by the ACS Committee on Trauma, which was established to improve all phases of patient care in trauma centers and to prevent injuries before they occur.

“Verification is a very difficult and challenging process that reviews the entire spectrum of care from the moment trauma patients hit the emergency room through the rehabilitation process,” said USF Health’s Dr. David Ciesla, associate professor of surgery at the Morsani College of Medicine and medical director of the TGH adult trauma program.

“The fact we are the only trauma center in Florida to earn this distinction reflects the high quality of care provided by our physicians and surgeons and the hospital’s clinical staff.”

More than 60 percent of the patients at Tampa General are treated by USF Health physicians.