• A O Paul, S Poloczek, C Güthoff, M Richter, A Ekkernkamp, G Matthes, and Traumanetzwerk Berlin.
• Klinik für Anästhesiologie, Intensivmedizin und Schmerztherapie, Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin, Warener Straße 7, 12683, Berlin, Deutschland.
• Unfallchirurg. 2015 Aug 1; 118 (8): 657-65.

IntroductionIn the initial treatment of severely injured patients a good cooperation of the emergency medical service (EMS) with the hospital team is mandatory. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the quality of cooperation between hospitals working within a trauma network and the rescue service and to develop a tool allowing assessment of the preclinical and clinical interface.MethodsSpecific surveys concerning preclinical management and transfer to the target hospital were developed within a modified Delphi process. Injured trauma patients were included if the EMS involved was participating in the network and they were transferred to one of the participating hospitals.ResultsOver an 11-month period a total of 360 patients were included in the study. The notification of transferring injured patients to the target hospital was carried out in a regular manner. Transport accompanied by an emergency physician occurred in 97% of the cases and no emergency physician was available although needed in only 1% of cases. Correct choice of target hospital was documented in 98.2%. The average waiting time for transferring the patient to the hospital team was 0.15 min. In 95.7% of cases a hospital physician was available to directly receive the patient in the emergency room. On a scale ranging from 1 (poor) to 10 (very good) clinical personnel as well as rescue teams rated the cooperation between both with a median of 10 points (IQR 8;10). From the clinicians point of view airway and circulation problems and external bleeding were correctly treated in the preclinical setting (airway 93.9%, circulation 97.3% and external bleeding 95.3%); however, for extremity injuries only in 78.5% of the cases.ConclusionThis survey presents an adequate tool to identify weak spots within the primary management and to point out elements for improvement.

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