Wednesday October 10, 2001

City willing to give some but can't do it alone

With the possibility for hundreds of deaths to result from the impending closures of both local level one trauma centers, city and county leaders are rallying to allocate funds to keep first-rate trauma care in Tucson.

Tucson mayor Bob Walkup said he would recommend that the city provide some funding to help University Medical Center, 1501 N. Campbell Ave., stay open.

"We will not stand by and let the level one trauma care collapse in Tucson," he said in a press release. "Despite a very difficult city budget situation, I will support and recommend to the city council a fair-share contribution towards the short term funding gap if we determine that it is required to maintain level one trauma care in Tucson."

John Duval, chief operating officer for UMC, said $3.3 million is needed to fill what he is calling a "stop-gap." The stop-gap is the amount of funding needed to keep the level one trauma center at Tucson Medical Center, 5301 E. Grant Road. open and still enable the hospital to maintain its partnership with UMC.

TMC, the level one trauma center in partnership with UMC, said it would no longer offer level one trauma as of Dec. 31 due to financial loss two weeks ago.

UMC also announced Monday that it would close at the end of the year if no other local hospital agrees to enter into a partnership to offer level one care.

Two weeks ago, the City Council denied UMC any funding to compensate for TMC's closure and said it had very little chance of getting money from the Arizona Legislature or Pima County Board of Supervisors.

"It is possible that 150 to 200 people might die in Tucson next year if there is no level one trauma center in this city," said Dr. Harvey Meislin, acting head of the emergency medicine department at University Medical Center.

Meislin said the lack of a trauma one center would most affect people whose injuries are immediate.

"Trauma one care most benefits patients who might die in the next couple minutes to an hour," Meislin said. "The current level one trauma system covers all of Southern Arizona; from New Mexico to the east, California to the west, Mexico to the south, and almost halfway to Phoenix."

County officials said more cuts by the state could make matters even worse.

Martin Willitt, deputy Pima County administrator, said an emergency vote at a special session of the Arizona Legislature beginning Nov. 13 would call for even more funding cuts to service at TMC.

Meislin said he would travel to Phoenix with Duval to address the state Legislature on the need for funding.

"The situation is not being ignored," Meislin said. "Everyone involved understands the acuteness of the situation."

Officials say all other area hospitals have not seen a level one trauma case in more than 16 years.

"Quality isn't the word to use - it's having the physicians and the facilities who specialize in level one trauma care," said Jami Eggold, spokesperson for Northwest Medical Center, 6200 N. La Cholla Blvd.

Eggold said NMC has never had a level one trauma since its opening 16 years ago.