вЂњThis is a manpower issue, nothing else.вЂќДeKalb Medical is the only trauma center for adults in DeKalb County.

вЂњWe will continue to offer the same care that we always have,вЂќ he said then. However, the hospital released a statement insisting that the level of trauma care at DeKalb Medical will not change, reiterating what Norwood said in an interview last month. Norwood could not be reached for comment Thursday. DeKalb Medical will treat those patients as well as patients who arrive by car, hospital administrators say. He would not address HardcastleвЂ™s concerns other than to say, вЂњall lives are in greater danger as we see facilities that have been designated as trauma centers drop out of the system.вЂќДЄs a general procedure, DeKalb Fire and Rescue does not deliver trauma patients to hospitals outside the trauma network unless the patient is alert enough to specifically request it or is in immediate danger of dying before reaching another hospital, OвЂ™Neal said. Patrick OвЂ™Neal, state EMS medical director, said itвЂ™s too early to know what impact DeKalb MedicalвЂ™s decision will have. Administrators said the hospital would have an easier time recruiting doctors because they increasingly want to work at non-trauma facilities where they are likely to have fewer emergency department shifts.Дr. вЂњThis affects everyone who lives or does business in DeKalb County,вЂќ said Gloria Lee, a Decatur resident who was at ThursdayвЂ™s meeting.ДeKalb MedicalвЂ™s board of directors made the decision this spring. On Thursday, DeKalb Medical CEO Eric Norwood met with concerned residents who have urged the hospital board to reconsider, and the DeKalb County Commission recently passed a resolution urging the hospital board to reconsider its decision. Hospital administrators counter that trauma cases account for about 1 percent of visits to the emergency room and that trauma care will continue. Don Siegel, DeKalb MedicalвЂ™s assistant chief of trauma. вЂњPatient care is going to be affected, no matter what they say,вЂќ said Dr.

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