Program Overview
According to SCIMS, in 2021, approximately 18,000 new Spinal Cord Injuries occur each year; these numbers only reflect those patients making it to the ED. Data from 2015 shows LOS has declined to an average of 12 days for inpatient care and 32 days for rehab. How many healthcare providers will care for an SCI patient over a 12-day stay? What education do they need? Based on evaluation data from the TCAA on-demand learning system, many healthcare providers have asked for additional education on spinal cord injuries. TCAA’s Education Committee has put together a seven-part series to provide education from EMS through Rehab. The series will conclude with sections on coding injuries and how to prevent them. The series will start in August and run through Spring of 2024. Each webinar will highlight healthcare providers from across the United States.
Estimated completion time: >60 minutes
Target Audience: Trauma Center Staff
At the conclusion of this course, the learner should be better able to:
- Describe the care of a trauma patient with spinal cord injuries
- Discuss the changes you can make with your processes to improve outcomes
- List the main components of a detailed neurological exam
Moderator: Heather Sieracki
Faculty Presenter: Gay Kurtz, Robert Greenberg
Presenter Bio
Gay Kurtz has 24+ years of nursing experience and has served the profession in many roles to include ICU Nurse, Critical Care Nurse Educator, Associate Chief Nurse, Trauma Nurse, and Emergency Department Nurse Manager in a Level 1 Trauma Center. She is currently the Trauma Program Manager for Baylor Scott & White Medical Center in Taylor, TX. Gay is also a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and continues to use these skills to improve processes across the healthcare continuum. Although most of her career was spent in the ICU, she transitioned to Trauma Nursing 6 years ago and fell in love with it. On a personal note, Gay is a mother to 4 daughters, enjoys playing on soccer and volleyball leagues, and serves on medical mission trips in remote villages across Haiti, Mali, Uganda, and Kenya.
Robert D. Greenberg, MD, FACEP is the Vice President and Chief Medical Officer for Emergency Services, Central Texas Division of Baylor Scott & White Health and Associate Professor for Texas A&M Health Sciences Center College of Medicine in Temple, Texas. Dr. Greenberg received his BS in medical technology from Northeast Louisiana University in Monroe, Louisiana. He received his MD from Louisiana State University Medical Center-Shreveport and completed specialty training in Emergency Medicine at the University of Cincinnati Hospital. He continues to practice clinically in multiple EDs across the central Texas region including adult and pediatric designated trauma centers. He is a Past President of the Texas College of Emergency Physicians, past Chair of the Governor’s EMS and Trauma Advisory Council in addition to other state level activities. He currently serves as the Chair of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Correctional Health Care Committee.