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Acute Care Surgery: A New Training and Practice Model in the United States

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Abstract

The specialty of trauma is at a crossroads. Choosing a career in trauma is associated with concerns related to lifestyle issues and maintenance of adequate operative experience. Trauma and critical care surgeons in the U.S. have reexamined their role based on these concerns and the realization that surgeon resources for the injured patient are in jeopardy. After much work over the past five years, a model of “Acute Care Surgery” has emerged and a training curriculum has been proposed. This article reviews the evolution of a new specialty and identifies some of the challenges and opportunities associated with the implementation of this model.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, Division of Trauma, University of California, Irvine, 333 City Blvd. West, Suite 700, Orange, CA, 92868, USA

    David B. Hoyt, Hubert D. Kim & Cristobal Barrios

Authors
  1. David B. Hoyt
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  2. Hubert D. Kim
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  3. Cristobal Barrios
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to David B. Hoyt.

Additional information

Presented at the 42nd World Congress of the International Society of Surgery, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, 26–30 August 2007.

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Hoyt, D.B., Kim, H.D. & Barrios, C. Acute Care Surgery: A New Training and Practice Model in the United States. World J Surg 32, 1630–1635 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-008-9576-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-008-9576-y

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