[Quality assurance in trauma surgery--meaning, characteristics and methods]

For trauma surgeons the compliance with and keeping to well organized and planned courses of action is obligatory. This is valid as well for the highly sensitive areas of preclinical emergency treatment, the primary treatment in the hospital and the exceptional management in polytrauma, as for treatment of solitary injuries of the musculo-skeletal system. Despite considerable activities--so far voluntarily--(optimization of courses of action, classification systems for injury grades, algorithms and close-meshed further education) control mechanisms are demanded by politicians and insurance companies. Therefore, comprehensive quality control is strived for in all different types of insurance coverage systems. In spite of justifiable restraints against control mechanisms, which oppose increasingly medical freedom in diagnostics and treatment, only cooperation with and proficient guidance of the often self-appointed quality assurance personnel is useful.