ARLINGTON, Texas — Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas has been designated as a Level I Trauma Center, which recognizes a nearly decade long strategy to provide advanced care to severely injured patients in North Texas. Texas Health Dallas is one of only 20 Level I Trauma facilities in Texas.

“As the only hospital in the northeast area of Dallas offering Level I trauma care, Texas Health Dallas will serve the critical needs of those in Dallas, Collin, Rockwall and Hunt counties,” said Barclay Berdan, FACHE, CEO of Texas Health Resources. “A traumatic medical event, be it a fall with brain injury or a major car accident, can be the most trying time of someone’s life. Our team will be standing by to provide quality clinical care when the community needs us the most.”

Verified by the American College of Surgeons and designated by the Texas Department of State Health Services, Level I Trauma Centers, also known as Comprehensive Trauma Facilities, provide regional resources for patients who require complex trauma care. As a Level I Trauma Center, Texas Health Dallas provides 24-hour in house coverage by trauma and general surgeons as well as coverage by specialties including orthopedic surgery, neurosurgery, radiology, internal medicine, plastic surgery, oral maxillofacial surgery and critical care.

“This designation caps many years of preparation, including adding specialty services and medical staff physicians to provide this service to our community,” said Jim Parobek, Texas Health Dallas president. “All first responders in North Texas now have another Level I facility to bring the worst trauma cases they encounter. We have been and remain ready to serve the most critically injured members of our community.”

Verified trauma centers must meet the essential criteria of trauma care capability and institutional performance, as outlined by the American College of Surgeons' Committee on Trauma in its current Resources for Optimal Care of the Injured Patient manual.

“Receiving Level I Trauma designation reflects our commitment to the community as a regional resource for trauma education and outreach, including injury prevention,” said Brian Tibbs, M.D., FACS, medical director, Trauma Services. “But at the heart of this designation is the excellent care we provide every day to our patients in their most crucial moments.”