Southern Illinois lacks hospitals with trauma centers

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Southern Illinois residents continue to lack easy access to hospitals with trauma centers that offer specialized care for severe injuries.

There aren't any trauma centers south of Springfield, which puts Southern Illinois in a trauma desert, The Southern Illinoisan reported. For many Illinois residents, the closest trauma center is in another state, such as Indiana or Missouri.

Illinois Department of Public Health spokeswoman Melaney Arnold said hospitals voluntarily become trauma centers. To be designated as a Level I or Level II trauma center, the department requires the hospital to have sophisticated equipment and qualified staff, such as subspecialty surgeons.

Arnold said it can cost more than $20 million yearly to operate a trauma center, and many hospitals can't afford it. The department also doesn't have authority to require a hospital to become a trauma center.

Heartland Regional Medical Center's emergency-room department manager, Amanda Throgmorton, said the hospital and Southern Illinois as a region always are looking for ways to give their patients the best care.

"We participate in our regional trauma meetings, and I serve on a subcommittee of trauma legislation where we work to look at rules and regulations," Throgmorton said. "We are constantly working to improve both."

Throgmorton said the biggest challenge hospitals in Southern Illinois face is getting the specialty physicians that are required to serve on trauma services.

"We are the community," Throgmorton said. "We want to make sure our region has the services, and we want to make sure our communities have the services they need."