The death rate could go up" if critically injured trauma patients are not treated during the golden hour."Seoul (ANTARA News/Yonhap) - Multi-trauma patients remained in emergency rooms much longer than recommended before being taken to operating tables, South Korea`s health ministry said Tuesday, a development that could lower their chances of survival.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare said its analysis of nearly 3,000 critically injured trauma patients in 2011 showed that they remained in emergency room care for an average of 242 minutes before being moved to operating rooms.
The ministry said the time patients remained under emergency room care was much longer than the golden hour, which in the medical profession is the one-hour window following a traumatic injury that is most optimal to begin treatment to increase the patients chance of survival.
"The death rate could go up" if critically injured trauma patients are not treated during the golden hour," said Jung Woo-jin, a deputy director handling emergency health care at the ministry.
The ministry said it has invested more than 10 billion won (US$9.4 million) in selecting and running 17 trauma centers across the country.
The issue of multi-trauma patients received media attention in 2011 when doctors treated the captain of a South Korean chemical carrier, who suffered serious gunshot wounds from Somali pirates during a rescue operation by a South Korean commando.
The vessel was freed and the captain was airlifted to South Korea for medical treatment.
(T.A045/H-AK)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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