Patterns of death, complication, and error in the management of motor vehicle accident victims: implications for a regional system of trauma care.

A nonautopsy, retrospective analysis of severe motor-vehicle accident trauma can provide valuable information in regard to volume of trauma and quality of care. In a 6-county region surrounding a large metropolitan area trauma care, as reviewed by this method, had deficiencies at all levels of delivery. Patients were taken to the nearest hospital. Hospitals then had not been classified or designated according to capability. Twenty-five per cent of the fatalities and 16% of all outcomes were considered inappropriate for the severity of injury incurred. A regional trauma system with categorization and designation of hospitals providing trauma care would have eliminated or improved these deficiencies, resulting in improved outcomes for a significant percentage of these patients.