[FreeperinRATcage]

Well..I wasn't there, but I do have some knowledge in this area. I've been a Paramedic for 20 years, the last 15 in a major city.

Your son was probably transported there due to "mechanism of injury", otherwise known as "kinematics". Basically, this says that a patient who has had sufficient force applied to their body to potentially cause serious injury must be taken to a trauma center. It does result in a lot of transports that eventually don't need the services of a trauma center, but it also can reveal the presence of hidden injuries that can kill you if you are not in a place where appropriate surgery can be performed immediately.

The theory is currently in dispute in some areas of the country, precisely because of the reasons you mentioned. What it comes down to is a cost/benefit analysis...what is the cost of having many unecessary patients taken to a trauma center as opposed to the liability of not taking someone who needs it because the injury is not obvious?

By the way..I'm very glad your son ended up not needing trauma services...it means he's OK :).

[Trust but Verify]

Yes, he was OK. We are forver grateful for that. Other than a surgical scar under his chin and the scars from the burns on his leg, you'd never know. He refuses to talk about it, though.