TRAUMA TROUBLES: Orange County once had five...

TRAUMA TROUBLES: Orange County once had five trauma centers; with the closing of Fountain Valley Regional Hospital’s center, it now has three (B1). . . . Since 1980, the centers have reduced the mortality rate in “preventable deaths” from 70% to under 5%, according to research by Dr. John G. West, a St. Joseph Hospital surgeon and trauma expert. . . . If another center closes, a potential disaster looms because of the domino effect on other aspects of medical care, West says, adding: “No way two trauma centers can do it.”