Trauma Prevention and Outreach
Coalition of North Texas. The Coalition is now a subcommittee of the Public Information and Education Committee of the North Texas Regional Advisory Council for Trauma Service Area-C (RAC). The coalition operates under the NHTSA model of a Safe Communities Coalition. It consists of representatives of law enforcement, the medical community, rural public health nurses, MADD, fire suppression personnel, the RAC, local universities, local county judges, and Sheppard Air Force Base (SAFB). This group continues to assess the reasons for injuries and deaths in our “community,” defined as Trauma Service Area-C. The Coalition addresses the needs with information exchange among agencies, and provides implementation and coordination. The Coalition meetings are held at United Regional.
Child Passenger Safety checkpoints are routinely conducted in Wichita County and surrounding counties, in cooperation with United Regional, the North Texas Emergency Nurses Association, the Injury Prevention Coalition of North Texas, Wichita Falls Police Department, Texas Department of Transportation, Texas Department of Public Safety, SAFB, and the RAC. In addition, United Regional has had its own Check Station since June 2004, and now has nine Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians who participate in the checkpoints.
United Regional cooperates with the Wichita County Teen Court Program Juvenile Probation Office and the Wichita Falls Municipal Court by holding monthly ED tour sessions with teens who have been sentenced for misdemeanor offenses, such as minor in possession, speeding, fighting in school, truancy, or driving without a license. Tours consist of a walk-through of the ED, a video, and field sobriety testing, utilizing the
Fatal Vision goggles to simulate a 0.15 blood alcohol level. Injury prevention education of Senior Citizens is conducted by the Trauma Educator to include areas of focus such as fall precautions, taking medications safely, and special concerns regarding driving as we age.
United Regional is a resource for injury prevention by serving as a clearinghouse for injury prevention brochures, posters, and coloring books.