• trauma/ critical care

Trauma remains a leading cause of mortality in the USA.1 In 2016, the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma were major stakeholders in the National Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine report that suggested there are up to 30 000 preventable deaths from trauma annually in the USA, many from uncontrolled hemorrhage.2 As the front-line provider, the emergency physician (EP) must receive extensive training in the care of traumatically injured patients. Several procedural interventions, including the performance of an emergency department resuscitative thoracotomy (EDRT), ultrasound, and arterial catheter insertion, are therefore included as part of the model of clinical practice for emergency medicine (EM).3

Resuscitative endovascular balloon occlusion of the aorta (REBOA)4 has emerged as a potential technique for controlling previously lethal truncal hemorrhage in the extremis trauma patient. Advances in ultrasound and catheter technology have simplified placement, decreasing the need for postplacement vascular access site repair. Programs to educate providers in the use of REBOA have emerged, but have been designed exclusively for surgeons with limited ability for EP participation. We strongly think that with appropriate training, EPs can develop the …