Talking Trauma

In the most recently published Victorian State Trauma Registry report, 39% of all trauma cases were transport related. Trauma prevention and road safety continues to play a huge part in the reduction of major trauma in Victoria and today we are joined by Samantha Cockfield, Head of Road Safety for the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) to provide insight into current issues facing Victorian road users and the role of the TAC. Current at date of publication 14/01/2021.

Victims of major trauma have a varied profile, including age, demographic & geographic location. Today Danielle speaks with Melissa Webb, trauma and orthopaedic allied health team leader at The Alfred Hospital to gain an understanding of the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to care and consider rehab and planning beginning from the roadside. Current at date of publication 04/01/2021.

Children are vulnerable to injury for a number of reasons with motor vehicle collisions (MVC’S) accounting for almost half of the fatalities in children. In Victoria, the Paediatric Infant Perinatal Emergency Retrieval (PIPER) service is available to retrieve critically injured children from referring hospitals and provide safe, expert, emergency inter-hospital care. Today we speak with Dr Sile Smith, a Paediatric Intensive Care Consultant from the Royal Children’s Hospital and Medical Co-lead for PIPER about the role PIPER has in Paediatric Major Trauma. Current at date of publication 28/12/2020.

The Victorian State Trauma System is one of the best in the world, with Adult Retrieval Victoria playing a significant role in making this a success. Today Danielle talks with Dr David Anderson, Acting Medical Director of Ambulance Victoria and an Intensivist at The Alfred Hospital to discuss how Adult Retrieval Victoria (ARV) operates within the state trauma system and gives you an inside look into behind the scenes of coordinating the care and retrieval of a major trauma patient. Current at date of publication 7/12/2020.

Limbs can often be involved in traumatic injuries from accidents in the workplace or farming for example. They can have a devastating impact on not only the patient but on bystanders. Today Danielle speaks to Mr Andrew Oppy, Lead Orthopaedic Trauma Surgeon at the Royal Melbourne Hospital to discuss how to approach the trauma patient with a significant extremity injury and provides some great insight into management of the affected limb. Current at date of publication 26/10/2020.

The critical trauma patient undergoes a number of moves throughout their care journey and can be a challenging group to safely manage. Today Danielle is chatting with Dr Shaun Baxter, an Emergency Consultant at The Alfred Hospital as well as Consultant Retrievalist and Clinical Coordinator at Adult Retrieval Victoria to discuss his process for safely moving the unwell trauma patient, including how best to prepare and the importance of clear communication. Current at date of publication 20.06.2020.

The time immediately after injury is crucial in the management of the trauma patient. The primary survey is designed to identify and treat life-threatening injuries quickly and is indicated for the evaluation of all trauma patients. In this podcast, Dr Jenny Jamieson, Emergency Medicine Consultant at The Alfred Hospital and Monash Medical Centre talks to us about the principles behind the Trauma Survey, including the Primary, Secondary & Tertiary assessment, with a focus on the initial identification and management of injuries. Current at date of publication 29/05/2020.

Physical trauma starts with the transfer of energy to the body from an outside source. Dr Joseph Mathew, an Emergency Physician & Deputy Director of the Trauma Service at the Alfred discusses how knowledge of patterns of injury and common mechanisms together with patient presentation can help us to have a healthy clinical suspicion of potential injuries related to that trauma. Joseph shares his knowledge and experience on known injury relationships to strengthen your assessment of a major trauma patient. Current at date of publication 21/05/2020.

Identifying potential injuries of the spine of a trauma patient and choosing the best imaging modality to investigate these may be challenging to navigate, particularly where radiology services have limited availability and/or accessibility. Associate Professor Dinesh Varma, Director of Trauma and Emergency Radiology at The Alfred Hospital, talks us through how factors such as clinical assessment, and mechanism of injury can play a vital role in decision making for imaging, and tips on clearing the spine. Current at date of publication 14/05/2020.