Philadelphia, PA – Sept. 11, 2014 – Arguing that research in traumatic injury, a significant public health problem, has long been underfunded, William G. Cioffi, MD, FACS, and President of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST), today announced the formation of the Coalition for National Trauma Research (CNTR). CNTR is a broad collaboration of six leading trauma organizations, including the National Trauma Institute (NTI), formed to press Congress for a significant and consistent financial commitment.
Cioffi delivered the news during his Presidential Address to the 73rd Annual Meeting of the AAST, attended by more than 1,000 surgeons and other medical professionals. NTI and AAST are joined by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (COT), Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma (EAST), Western Trauma Association (WTA) and American Trauma Society (ATS) in founding the coalition.
Together, these trauma-related organizations represent more than 4,500 professionals in surgical and emergency medicine fields and settings. “We see first-hand the toll that traumatic injury takes on our society and know that we can do better,” said Cioffi.
CNTR will seek consistent and significant funding for studies that increase an understanding of the mechanisms of traumatic injury and inform clinical practice. In addition, the coalition will advocate for a centralized research agenda to prioritize work in the discipline, and for federal support of a robust trauma research infrastructure – including a National Trauma Research Repository and a Trauma Clinical Trials Network.
“For 40 years, federal agencies have recognized a gaping hole in the funding for trauma research; and now with a chorus of voices from the trauma community confirming the need, we are optimistic that the message will be heard,” said Gregory J. (Jerry) Jurkovich, MD, FACS and chair of NTI. “The National Trauma Institute is proud to be a founding member of CNTR.”
Learn more about the National Trauma Institute and the coalition at nationaltraumainstitute.org.
###