The Burn Center at University of Colorado Hospital is the only burn center in the State of Colorado—and the entire
Rocky Mountain region—to be verified by the American Burn Association. The Burn Center is the main referral to the surrounding regions including Wyoming, New Mexico, Montana, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas.
The program experienced a 25% increase in total new-patient admissions in 2016. The Center has expanded from a nine-bed ICU to 19 inpatient beds with designated ICU, step-down, and floor beds, as well as three outpatient consult rooms within the Center.
The Burn Center has also expanded its mid-level provider coverage. Other new additions within the last year include a full-time pharmacist, research assistant, and clinical coordinator. A new dedicated clinical psychologist will join soon.
For patients who arrive within our ED, a new Burn Notification system with Burn Activations and Alerts has been initiated. The five-day-per-week outpatient burn clinic is able to schedule approximately 10% of all patient visits as same-day appointments.
Burn education and prevention is an important part of the Center’s work, with over 150 community outreach activities annually. The team works with groups such as electrical linemen and glassblowers, reaching out to businesses to help educate their
staff on the importance of safety procedures, how to care for themselves and co-workers if an injury occurs, and typical treatment in a Burn Center.
We provide continuing education to all levels of providers. The Burn Team provides Advanced Burn Life Support (ABLS) certification courses in the Burn Center as well as on the road. Our format combines online didactic education with high-fidelity, hands-on
simulation. In 2016, we certified 96 providers in the Rocky Mountain region.
Burn and fire prevention is a pillar of our Burn Center. The Team participates in campaigns to teach “Stop, Drop, and Roll,” checking smoke detectors, how to extinguish grease fires, and proper temperature settings on hot water heaters. The
team partners with local fire departments to identify areas for further reinforcement.
Frostbite is a risk to our community that can be prevented with correct precautions. The team raises money each winter to purchase socks, boots, and other cold-weather apparel to be distributed to our homeless and indigent neighbors.