As dozens of hospitals and medical centers close nationwide, St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, Mont., is expanding its services. The Intermountain Health-owned facility will now offer emergency air and ground transport services to its patients in Montana and Wyoming, according to a press release shared with NBC affiliate KULR.
The facility, which is currently a level 2 trauma center, is on its way to becoming the only level 1 trauma center in the state after requesting verification under the American College of Surgeons in August 2022.
"According to the most recent State of Montana Trauma Registry data, for two years in a row, more patients trusted St. Vincent with their trauma care than any other trauma center in Montana," the KULR-published release notes.
St. Vincent Healthcare anticipates it will receive results of its verification request from the American College of Surgeons in late 2023.
The designation as a level 1 trauma center will allow it to "elevate the quality of care," Barry McKenzie, MD, trauma surgeon and trauma medical director at St. Vincent, said in the release.
If it is verified to become a level 1 trauma center, St. Vincent's will open a comprehensive trauma center in early 2024.