Ventura County OKs Trauma Plan, Awaits Approval From State
On Tuesday, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors approved a trauma plan that would require one hospital in both the east and west parts of the county to seek designation as level two trauma centers, the Ventura County Star reports.
The plan is pending approval from the state's Emergency Medical Services Authority.
St. John's Regional Medical Center in Oxnard and Ventura County Medical Center in Ventura have stepped forward to fill the slot for the west county, and Los Robles Hospital & Medical Center in Thousand Oaks is expected to submit a proposal to become the trauma center for the east county.
An independent committee of trauma experts outside the county would review the hospitals' proposals and make recommendations to county supervisors.
Ventura County Emergency Medical Services Administrator Barry Fisher said he does not have a timeline for the process but expects final approvals within a year.
Solano County is the only other county in the state without a trauma network (Kisken, Ventura County Star, 11/12). This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.