The system launched a study in January in the wake of protests claiming U of C needs to do more for trauma victims, according to the report. Chicago only has six Level 1 trauma centers, one of which is U of C’s Comer Children’s Hospital. The system does not have an adult trauma center, however, and the U of C emergency department turns away 6,000 patients each year without treatment due to capacity limitations, according to Crain’s.
An Illinois Department of Public Health report found U of C Medicine was the only Chicago hospital studied with “sufficient resources” to open a Level 1 trauma center, according to the report.
If the study finds a need for it, the trauma center could cost “30s of millions” of dollars, Brenda Battle, vice president at U of C Medicine, told Crain’s.
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