Trauma Trial

Temple is leading a first-of-its-kind study that could change how paramedics, nationwide, treat patients with gunshot or stab wounds to the torso.

“We are investigating whether these patients have a better chance of survival if they are taken right to the hospital rather than first receiving standard field procedures,” says Amy Goldberg, MD, FACS, Chief of Trauma & Surgical Critical Care. Goldberg is leading Temple’s participation in the study, which includes the city’s other trauma centers and the Philadelphia Fire Department.

“Inserting breathing tubes and providing IV fluids may be detrimental in certain cases,” Goldberg notes. “For example, if you put an IV line in a patient who is bleeding and pump their pressure up with intravenous fluids, you might dislodge clots and cause more bleeding.”

Goldberg says the trial results could change standard paramedic practices for these types of trauma patients nationwide. In addition to advancing care for victims of traumatic violence, Temple is committed to violence prevention, education, and outreach. Its Cradle to Grave and Philadelphia Ceasefire programs target at-risk youth and known offenders.

“Violence is a public health problem,” says Goldberg, Temple’s Interim Chair of Surgery.