TRAVERSE CITY — Munson Medical administrators are saying that quick work from physicians and hospital staff could have helped avoid a deadly tragedy following Saturday’s Walmart attack.
Eleven patients were transported to the Munson Medical Center after the attack, requiring multiple surgeries simultaneously.
“The members of our trauma team that received the patients were able to immediately triage and begin definitive treatment efforts,” said Dr. Thomas Schermerhorn, chief physician of Munson Medical Center. “Our team starts in the field with EMS at the scene and their responses, the expertise, the efforts, the actions they took in the field — as described by one of our trauma surgeons — were nothing short of life saving.”
Dr. Schermerhorn says that the hospital has worked for years to improve its emergency response capabilities.
“It’s our duty to be prepared for fluctuations in patient presentations, patient volumes, such as we saw this weekend,” he said.
Joe Hurshe, president and CEO of the hospital, says that doctors were quickly ready to provide care after the attack.
“When we receive victims of a trauma, we have to immediately open up our surgical suites in our operating room, and we had multiple operating rooms running simultaneously to be able to care for those that were injured,” he said.
As of Monday, three victims of the attack had been treated, one of them being released from the hospital.
One patient remained in serious condition, five in fair condition and two in good condition.
“In general, the patients that remain under our care continue to progress, and we remain optimistic for a full recovery,” Hurshe said.
Hurshe says that community support has helped the hospital stay focused on caring for the victims of the attack.
“Whether it’s blood donation, blood products, other levels of assistance to help, even providing food and beverage to our clinical teams and our care team members that have not been readily available to take a break,” he said.
