Trauma & Critical Care Centre

The Trauma & Critical Care Centre at SilverOak Health is a major trauma centre providing 24/7 specialist care for patients with life-threatening injuries and critical illness, supported by a dedicated multidisciplinary team of trauma surgeons, emergency physicians, intensivists, anaesthesiologists, orthopaedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, and specialist nursing staff. Our trauma programme delivers coordinated, protocol-driven care from the scene of injury through definitive surgical management, critical care, and rehabilitation.

Trauma team activation for major injuries triggers simultaneous preparation of the resuscitation bay, trauma surgical team, operating theatres, and intensive care unit. Primary survey and damage control resuscitation using balanced haemostatic resuscitation — combining packed red blood cells, fresh frozen plasma, and platelets in a 1:1:1 ratio — begins in the emergency department and continues through the operating theatre for haemodynamically unstable patients. Massive transfusion protocols activated by our haematology and blood bank team ensure rapid availability of blood products around the clock.

Damage control surgery — abbreviated initial procedures to control haemorrhage and contamination, followed by planned definitive repair after physiological resuscitation — is the operative strategy for the most critically injured patients. Temporary vascular shunting for vascular injuries, perihepatic packing for liver trauma, and external fixation of unstable pelvic fractures are key initial damage control manoeuvres. Interventional radiology — available 24 hours — provides transcatheter embolisation for vascular bleeding from solid organ, pelvic, and bronchial sources, achieving haemostasis without surgical exploration in many cases.

Our intensive care unit provides the highest level of organ support for critically ill patients — whether from trauma, sepsis, post-cardiac arrest, or post-major surgery. Advanced monitoring including arterial lines, central venous and pulmonary artery catheters, intracranial pressure monitoring, and continuous EEG guides therapy. Mechanical ventilation using lung-protective strategies, renal replacement therapy for acute kidney injury, vasopressor and inotropic support, and targeted temperature management after cardiac arrest are all delivered within our evidence-based critical care protocols.

Rehabilitation within the critical care environment — including early mobilisation by our ICU physiotherapy and occupational therapy team, nutritional support optimised by critical care dietitians, and psychological support for patients and families — mitigates the physical deconditioning and cognitive sequelae of critical illness. Post-intensive care syndrome follow-up clinic supports patients recovering from prolonged ICU admission. Our trauma and critical care programme participates in national major trauma audit (TARN), enabling continuous benchmarking of survival rates and functional outcomes against comparable centres nationally.