San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (SFGHTC) is a licensed general acute care hospital which provides a full complement of inpatient, outpatient, emergency, skilled nursing, diagnostic, mental health and rehabilitation services for adults and children. SFGHTC operates the only Level I Trauma Center for 1.5 million residents of San Francisco, Northern San Mateo, and Marin Counties. It is designated by the San Francisco Emergency Medical Services Agency and verified by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACSOT). Multidisciplinary personnel, resources, equipment, and supplies are dedicated to providing total care for every aspect of injury.
The structure of the care delivery system for the trauma patient is based on state of the art treatment, comprehensive injury, prevention programs as well as clinical and laboratory research. The mission of the trauma program is to provide optimal cost-effective trauma care from the time of injury to discharge. The goal of SFGHTC trauma care is returning the trauma patient to his/her pre-injury state. In the late 1960’s, when the results of medical research from the battlefields of Korea and Vietnam began to influence civilian trauma care in the United States, Dr. William F. Blaisdell at SFGH directed innovations in the city’s trauma care system. Staffed by surgeons from the University of California, SFGHTC received National Institute of Health (NIH) grant funding and became an NIH designated trauma research center in 1972.
Since the 1970’s SFGHTC’s Surgical and Neurosurgical staffs have played pivotal roles in setting standards of care in many areas of traumatic injury. In the last 50 years, research in the treatment of injured soldiers and civilians has produced mounting evidence to suggest that seriously injured patients are best served by well-integrated systems of care that activate specialized resources on a moment’s notice and provides expert definitive treatment within an hour. A recent report of evaluated studies of trauma care consistently demonstrated improvements to the survival of hospitalized patients when high standards of trauma care are incorporated. This translates into nationwide annual estimates of approximately 20,000 to 25,000 lives saved. Through the 1990’s SFGH’s Trauma Center has continued to develop its programs in clinical care, rehabilitation, functional recovery and violence prevention. The current system is trauma center-based; with quality improvement activities focusing on the pre-hospital, emergency and acute care of the most severe injuries.
For more information visit: San Francisco Department of Public Health
Through its long-standing affiliation with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), SFGH serves as a training center to one of the top medical programs in the country. SFGHTC promotes academic excellence through its wide range of services for a diverse patient population. In addition to its commitment to providing the best patient care, SFGHTC is also a nucleus for innovative research. The SFGHTC campus is home to more than 20 UCSF research centers, affiliated institutes, and major laboratories. Over 160 UCSF principal investigators conduct research through programs based at the hospital campus. Because it is an academic hospital, SFGH is on the cutting edge of the latest medical advances.
For further information visit: UCSF Department of Neurological Surgery
