Kirkland’s Evergreen Hospital Medical Center has received a Level III Trauma Center designation from the Washington State Department of Health. The DOH awards this designation to hospitals that meet a high level of 24-hour trauma emergency, operative and critical care services. Evergreen had been a Level IV Center since joining the state trauma system in 1995.

The criteria for the five levels of trauma designations are set by the American College of Surgeons and are governed in Washington by the Department of Health. The higher the level, the more highly trained the staff is and the more advanced the facility. As a Level III hospital, Evergreen provides prompt assessment, resuscitation, emergency surgery and stabilization of trauma victims. The highest designation, Level 1, covers a region. Harborview Hospital in Seattle is the only Level 1 trauma center in Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho.

“With this designation we will be even better able to enrich the health and well-being of the people we serve at times of crisis when they most depend on us,” said Bob Malte, Evergreen’s chief executive officer.  “The designation, too, is a testament to the commitment and drive of our staff and physicians who did the hard work of earning it.”

Evergreen’s Emergency Department has four large trauma and resuscitation rooms close to the emergency entrance. State-of-the-art digital imaging is available in the ED, and a trauma team (emergency physicians and nurses, surgeons, anesthesiologists, respiratory therapists and imaging technicians, among many others) is always standing by and ready to go. Operating rooms with the latest tech­nology are ready 24 hours a day.

Evergreen is able to provide quality care for a patient from the scene of their injury through their treatment and rehabilitation.