Joseph Hospital in Lake Saint Louis is still a Level III trauma center.Īmbulances do, in some cases, already have to take patients south to BJC HealthCare Barnes-Jewish Hospital, SSM Health St. SSM ended its trauma center designation three years ago at St. Stuhlman said his district also responds to workplace accidents at the warehouses and manufacturers in Earth City. Pattonville Fire Protection District paramedics there are often responding to vehicle crashes: Between Interstates 70 and 270, Page Avenue and the Maryland Heights Expressway, the area is full of busy roads with high speed limits. SSM’s statement did not specify, and officials didn’t respond to questions about that possibility by deadline. It is possible that DePaul could continue to treat some lower-level trauma patients, if the hospital pursues the less specialized Level III trauma center designation. Level II trauma centers are required to have immediate access to general surgeons. SSM said the change, discontinuing its designation as a Level II trauma center, will take effect Sept. “Yet, only a very small percentage of individuals treated in our emergency room each year require trauma services.” “Trauma care is a highly-specialized service - and medical best practice shows we must treat a minimum number of patients to maintain the level of experience, training and equipment a trauma program requires,” the DePaul Hospital statement read. DePaul Hospital has Level I designations for treating strokes and heart attacks, and those services will not change. SSM Health said it will work closely with local emergency medical service providers to help with the transition.