KALISPELL – Kalispell Regional Medical Center is seeing a dramatic increase in trauma visits to the Emergency Room. Back in 2016, the hospital saw 382 traumas come through the door but last year that number increased by 75 cases to 455.
Injury Prevention Coordinator Dan Daub says July and August are the busiest months for traumas. The majority of incidents seen at KRMC are head and hip incidents caused by motor vehicle and ATV accidents and falls.
Daub says the record number of traumas the hospital saw in one month was 64 in 2016 but with 20 traumas since July 1st he says the hospital is on track this month to get close to it.
With temperatures heating up he says they’ve been seeing three to four a day a day but Daub says some precautions can be taken to reduce incidents.
He says motorists should take their time, pay attention and wear seatbelts and recreationists should prepare for the worst by wearing a helmet, wrist bands and wrist guards.
""First of all with the weather people are out more they’re doing more energetic activities, mountain biking down hillsides, riding their ATV’s a little faster than they should, so it’s just a combination of all the things we get to do in the summertime," Daub said. "In the wintertime we typically see some ski accidents but most of those are tips and falls."
Thanks to Flathead Electric Cooperative’s Round-Up For Safety Program helmets are available at the hospital at mo cost to members of the community. Call (406) 751-5727 for more information.
