Trauma raises questions

In an era of shrinking federal resources and a growing indigent patient population, how can a major hospital retain a successful trauma center that doesn't drain its financial base? Jeptha W. Dalston, Ph.D., president of Houston's Hermann Hospital, a 516-bed institution that revamped its trauma center, and, in the process, turned its bottom line from red to black, discusses the important issues hospital administrators must address before closing the door on emergency care.