NUMC’s designation as Level 1 trauma center renewed

Nassau University Medical Center has again been designated a Level 1 trauma center, allowing the East Meadow hospital to continue treating life-threatening injuries such as gunshot wounds, officials announced Thursday.

The medical facility — which receives an estimated 73,000 to 75,000 emergency department visits a year — is the fourth hospital on Long Island to receive this distinction after a two-year review by the American College of Surgeons, a Chicago-based accredited body.

“The significance of it is in the requirement that we maintain a high standard of performance in quality of care,” Dr. Lambros George Angus, NUMC’s trauma medical director, said Thursday at a news conference at the hospital. “It is validation that the care that we provide here is as good as any other trauma center in the country.”

Trauma center levels — from 1 to 5 — refer to the kinds of resources available at the hospitals and the number of patients admitted annually. A Level 1 trauma center provides total care for every aspect of an injury, including in-house coverage by surgeons round-the-clock.

NUMC receives about 1,700 trauma cases a year, including 30 related to shootings and 27 related to stabbings, according to a hospital spokeswoman.

The other three Long Island hospitals designated by the surgeon group as Level 1 trauma centers are Northwell Health system in Manhasset, NYU Winthrop Hospital in Mineola and Stony Brook University Hospital.