Abstract
In the wake of the Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995, various trauma treatment reforms were initiated ; however, progress in establishing trauma centers has been slow. The government has been postponing discussions on the need for trauma centers because the overall population is decreasing, and preventive measures have reduced the number of trauma fatalities. When authorizing trauma centers at existing facilities, if the conditions are set too high, few facilities will be able to participate, whereas if the conditions are set too low, there is a risk of an upsurge in the number of trauma centers, which could undermine the goal of effectively consolidating trauma patients. For hospital managers, the current medical insurance system makes ensuring profitability based solely on trauma care challenging. The general public believes that a “trauma center” is a facility that treats any type of injury ; therefore, improvements are necessary to better emphasize the specific role and necessity of these centers. For young doctors, awareness of traumatology is low, learning about it is slow, and there are high hurdles involved in becoming a specialist. The establishment of trauma centers and their consolidation are essential for managing the approximately 12,000 severe trauma cases that occur annually. We propose achieving this through the implementation of a special zone system.
