Florida's trauma surgeons: a vanishing breed.

Area of Science:

• Emergency Medicine
• Surgical Care
• Trauma Surgery

Background:

• The provision of trauma and emergency surgical care faces significant challenges.
• A potential crisis in trauma care delivery has been suggested.
• Florida's trauma care system was examined to assess the manifestation of this crisis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To survey Florida's state-designated trauma centers regarding their trauma surgeon workforce.
• To assess surgeon availability, call burden, surgeon demographics, and future commitment to trauma call.
• To evaluate the recruitment landscape for trauma surgeons in Florida.

Main Methods:

• A survey was distributed to the trauma medical directors of all 20 state-designated trauma centers in Florida.
• Data collected included the number of surgeons available for trauma call, monthly call frequency, surgeon age, and planned years of continued call.
• Information on recruitment efforts for additional trauma surgeons was also obtained.

Main Results:

• Fourteen trauma centers responded to the survey.
• On average, trauma centers had at least four surgeons covering call, with an average of 5.3 nights per month per surgeon.
• Sixty-three percent of trauma surgeons were under 50 years old, but 39.5% planned to stop taking call within 10 years.
• Nine centers were actively recruiting, with most recruitment efforts ongoing for less than two years.
• The study identified a significant number of surgeons planning to discontinue trauma call within a decade.

Conclusions:

• Florida's trauma surgeon workforce is facing a critical shortage.
• Recruitment challenges exacerbate the diminishing number of general surgeons available for trauma care.
• The findings suggest an impending crisis in trauma and emergency surgical care delivery in Florida.