UAB’s Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery recognizes National Trauma Awareness Month this May. Besides turning the green UAB sign on the Sixth Avenue parking deck red for the month, the division is hosting several events for the UAB community to participate in.

Awareness for traumatic injuries is important now more than ever. UAB, as the home to the state’s only American College of Surgeons-verified Level 1 Trauma Center, saw a record surge in volume last year, reflecting national trends in rising gun violence and car crashes. In 2021, UAB cared for 4,568 trauma admissions – a 10% increase from 2020. And over the past two years, there’s been been a 27% increase in the amount of severely injured patients admitted to the hospital.

Despite the rising numbers of trauma patients, there is hope to be found. Last year UAB saw a 96% survival rate for its trauma patients – it’s highest rate ever. And UAB’s trauma professionals aren’t just saving lives in the trauma bay and operating room – they’re also focused on awareness for and prevention of injury, strengthening the current Alabama trauma system, and building communities of support for trauma survivors and their families.

Recently the division hired an injury prevention coordinator who is reaching populations across the state with programs like distracted driving for teens and fall prevention and exercise classes for seniors. The division also teaches courses in Stop the Bleed, which trains people to perform lifesaving measures in an emergency like applying a tourniquet and pressure on a serious wound. The division has taught Stop the Bleed courses to teachers and students in schools across central Alabama.

The division offers the Rural Trauma Team Development Course to rural hospitals across the state, which empowers these hospitals to evaluate and resuscitate the seriously injured and to determine whether the patient needs to be transferred to a hospital that can offer a higher level of care, and is working on a telemedicine infrastructure for trauma consults. These efforts and more will help build on the current state trauma system to help patients in rural areas have the highest level of care possible in the critical hours following their injuries.

UAB is in the early stages of launching its Trauma Survivors Network, which is available for all trauma patients and their families and will offer programs like support groups and peer mentoring from trained and compassionate survivors. UAB Hospital will also be the home to a new Hospital-linked Violence Intervention Program which will assist survivors of gun violence in the hospital setting, providing social, medical and mental health services, and monitoring survivors’ progress over time.

Director of the Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery Jeffrey Kerby, M.D., Ph.D., FACS, was recently named Chair of the Committee on Trauma, the preeminent global authority on trauma care, and also serves as Alabama’s first trauma consultant.

“Whether you hear a survivor’s remarkable story of recovery or help others in their time of need by giving blood or learning how to stop life-threatening bleeding, we invite our UAB colleagues to take a moment and join us in recognizing Trauma Awareness Month,” Kerby said.

Here are five ways to join the division in recognizing Trauma Awareness Month: 

Honor trauma survivors and their medical care teams.

Come join UAB's Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery on Wednesday, May 18 at 3 p.m. in the second-floor atrium at North Pavilion as we honor trauma survivors, their families, and the medical personnel that care for them on National Trauma Survivors Day. Former trauma patients will share their incredible stories of recovery. Music and refreshments will be served before and after the event. RSVP here.

Race to Rebuild with trauma survivors.

At 4:00 p.m. beginning at the Jim Limbaugh Family Park of Hope outside the Women and Infants Center, UAB's Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery will recognize National Trauma Survivors Day with a symbolic walk outside around the UAB Medical Center. Come help faculty, staff, trauma survivors, and their families spread awareness for traumatic injuries and the unique challenges that survivors and their families face on the road to recovery. RSVP here.

Cheer on the Birmingham Legion and a trauma survivor.

Please join us at Protective Stadium at 7:00 p.m., as the Birmingham Legion takes on the Las Vegas Lights. Legion will be honoring a UAB trauma survivor on the field at halftime in honor of Trauma Survivors Day. Get tickets here.

Learn how to Stop the Bleed.

The division will be offering Stop the Bleed training to UAB employees on National Stop the Bleed Day – Thursday, May 19. By learning how to Stop the Bleed, you’ll gain the ability to recognize life-threatening bleeding and act quickly and effectively to control bleeding once you learn three quick techniques. Become empowered to make a life or death difference when a bleeding emergency happens. CEU's will be provided. Register here.

Donate blood.

Blood supplies have been dangerously low since the start of the pandemic. A seriously injured trauma patient can need between 20 to 30 units of blood. It’s imperative to keep blood supplies maintained, especially in case there’s a mass casualty event. There is a blood drive in North Pavilion this May – consider giving blood in honor of a trauma patient. Make an appointment here.

Tanner Coffman contributed reporting to this story.