When Minutes Matter: WCMH and Time Critical Diagnoses WCMH is Ready for Action 24/7: Trauma, Stroke, and Heart Attack Emergency Care
11/20/2021
In 2008, Missouri established the Time Critical Diagnosis (TCD) System which brings together the 911 response system, ambulance services, and hospitals in an integrated system to help Missourians survive and recover from trauma, stroke, and heart attack events.
Hospitals in this system are ranked from Level I-IV based on the services they offer. Not all Missouri hospitals are ranked because they do not have adequate resources to treat TCDs.
To be included in the network of Missouri hospitals that regularly save lives when minutes matter, WCMH must meet state standards for care that are updated by leaders in their medical field annually. This includes rapid response rate, education level of doctors, nurses, and staff, and the ability to stabilize the patient.
Missouri Department of Health and Human Services defines the four levels of certification as:
Level I Centers function as resource center within a region, for example maintaining specialized resources for the most complex patients.
Level II Centers generally provide definitive care to high volumes of trauma, stroke and STEMI patients within a region.
Level III Centers play an important role in providing access into the system and important patient care in non-metropolitan areas, and generally refer to a higher level center for definitive care.
Level IV Centers, a key entry point into the system, provide access into the system in rural areas and stabilize and prepare patients for rapid transfer to a higher level of care.
You can see a list of all TCD certified hospitals and their TCD rank here:
Missouri Time Critical Diagnosis Centers
WCMH is listed as a Level III Center for stroke events and is currently anticipating the approval of our Level III designation for heart attack events.
Read more about WCMH stroke and heart attack care here:
Heart Attack