UPMC announced earlier this month that their Altoona hospital will no longer be operating as a level two trauma center. Representatives from UPMC Altoona say that on September 10th, they will go from a level two down to a level three trauma center. Now, one of the biggest differences will be the decrease in the amount of Surgeons on staff, and what types of injuries they can treat right here in Altoona versus sending patients somewhere else.
Huntingdon County Commissioners tell us that UPMC Altoona was the closest level two or higher trauma center to them, located just about twenty miles from parts of Huntingdon County. With the recent news, the next closest trauma center level two or higher would be either in Harrisburg or Johnstown, both more than 50 miles away. Huntingdon County Commissioner Jeff Thomas saying: “It’s going to be the same as Penn Highlands now they’re going to patch you up and fly you someplace else and hopefully you can make that transition flight because they’re going to patch you up the best they can and we’re thankful they’re doing that, but we still need that sort of service in our community.”
According to the PA Trauma Systems Foundation, a level three trauma center has the services to stabilize and transport patients to a higher-level trauma center, instead of treating severe injuries themselves. In their statement to us, Representatives from the hospital say quote: “We believe that most of the current traumatic injuries seen at UPMC Altoona will continue to be serviced in our program”
They also say that this change better aligns with the needs of their patients. Huntingdon County Commissioner Scott Walls says that communication between the county and the nearby health systems has declined over the last several years. He says this decline in medical services has been a common theme throughout central Pennsylvania. Walls saying: “We’re no different than Somerset, Bedford, Mifflin counties, they’re all losing the extra added services and it’s sad. When people want to move here they want to know what kind of healthcare they’ll have and there’s just so many factors involved with it whenever you downgrade your healthcare system.”
The Commissioners say Huntingdon County has Juniata College, and also Raystown Lake, which draws in more than a million visitors a year. They say these entities only add to the need for a trauma center nearby. Thomas adding: “People come from all over the world so when they want to make a decision about coming here, they want to know that their family members, daughters, and sons, are going to be safe arriving there and that they’ll get the proper care that they need.”
Now again, this change will not be fully in place until September tenth, and until then, UPMC Altoona will continue to operate as a level two trauma center.