Trauma clinical nurses Carla Daly and Kerrie Lear perform a crucial role within Mackay Hospital and Health Service (HHS) overseeing care and collecting detailed data on patients who experience major trauma.
Not only do they provide the ‘glue’ for patients who may need care from a number of specialties, their work also provides valuable information on the number of major traumas experienced in our region.
The importance of what they do has been highlighted by the release of the inaugural Queensland Trauma Data Collection (QTDC} Report in July this year.
“This QTDC report is so good because this is the first time that every hospital in Queensland has collated data on major trauma,” Carla said.
“Previously, it was only a select few of the tertiary hospitals in Queensland who submitted data to the national trauma registry, grossly underestimating the number of major traumas in this state.”
Key findings which are significant for Mackay HHS were that more than 50 per cent of major trauma occurs in regional and remote areas, and more than 50 per cent are cared for in a non-trauma centre.
The report also defined what is known anecdotally – that Mackay Base Hospital is a busy regional trauma centre sitting in the top 10 of the 25 largest hospitals in the state.
The high quality of trauma services provided throughout the region was also demonstrated, with Mackay rating amongst the best in the state for ED trauma notification, transfer times from scene/rural hospitals and overall survival outcomes.
Trauma nurses only step in when there’s been a trauma activation.
“So that’s Tier One trauma cases, generally your serious car accidents, motorbike accidents,” Carla said.
“Our job is to see them, in the Emergency Department (ED) if we need to, and then follow up on the wards just to make sure the patient has coordination of care.
“Their requirements can be quite complicated in that they’re utilising many teams – for example it might be orthopaedic surgery, anaesthetics, paediatrics if they’re children. Then you get all your allied health teams – physio, your occupational therapists.
“It’s difficult sometimes with multiple different injuries and multiple different teams and we aim to provide that oversight wherever we can.”
The other big part of their role is the data collection which has contributed to the QTDC Report.
“All patients that have a trauma activation in ED will have their trauma-specific data entered into the trauma database,” Carla said.
“The QTDC then takes from this data pool only the data for patients that meet the criteria for major trauma.
“The data will be beneficial in that it can show the amount of major trauma cases that we’re receiving and completing care for in these places.
“In the southeast corner, major traumas can go directly to the bigger referral centres, but we don’t have the luxury of that because of the sheer distance that we have to cover.
“So we have to be equipped at our little towns, our smaller facilities, to be able to deal with the full gamut of trauma, just to stabilize patients before they can get them out, and our facilities do a very good job of managing this.”
Both Carla and Kerrie have many years of experience in trauma nursing.
Carla worked in Mackay Base Hospital’s ED for 20 years before commencing in the trauma nurse role seven years ago. She now also spends half her time working in our Specialist Outpatients Department (SOPD).
Kerrie joined the trauma team in August 2023. She had three years’ experience in Mackay’s ED before moving into intensive care nursing four years ago. She continues to split her time between the trauma role and the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
Thank you both for the great work you do!
Key reasons for trauma activations
*MHHS data for 2024 (January – July)
- 34% – motor vehicle accidents
- 18% – motorbikes, ATV, quad bikes
- 18% – falls
- 6% – E-scooters
