Morris Hospital to Discontinue Level II Trauma Status

Morris Hospital to Discontinue Level II Trauma Status

June 26, 2025, MORRIS, IL – Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers has informed the Illinois Department of Public Health that it will be discontinuing its voluntary Level II Trauma Center designation effective July 1, 2025.

“First and foremost, we want the community to know that the Level II trauma status does not change the care that we provide in our emergency room. Additionally, the public doesn’t need to do anything differently when seeking emergency care,” said Tom Dohm, President & CEO of Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers. “The highly trained physicians and staff in our emergency room are still going to take care of patients whose injuries are within our ability to treat and we will continue to stabilize and transfer patients who need a higher level of care, just as we have always done.”

Dohm said the decision is the result of multiple factors including recent changes to IDPH rules that require neurosurgery coverage for Level II trauma centers. Morris Hospital has never offered neurosurgery. In addition, two of the three trauma surgeons on the Morris Hospital medical staff are discontinuing trauma surgery call coverage, leaving the hospital with just one trauma surgeon to provide 24-hour daily coverage.

“After evaluating our Level II Trauma Center status over the past few years, we believe this is the right time to discontinue the designation based on our inability to provide all of the required resources,” said Dohm.

Records maintained by Morris Hospital show that just one trauma surgery was performed at the hospital in 2024. All of the other trauma patients who required surgery last year were transferred to other trauma centers for a higher level of care.

“Despite the fact that we are a Level II trauma center, by far the majority of trauma patients brought to Morris Hospital who require surgery get transferred because their injuries require an advanced level of care that we don’t provide here, including head injuries, pediatric trauma, and complex fractures,” Dohm said.

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While Morris Hospital will no longer have a formal trauma program or an on call trauma surgeon beginning July 1, other components associated with being a Level II trauma center will remain the same, including 24/7 availability of anesthesia, laboratory, and CT scan. In addition, Morris Hospital will continue to accept trauma patients for stabilization and transfer, and physicians and staff in the emergency department will continue to maintain a high level of training and certification.

Morris Hospital has communicated its plans with area fire and ambulance districts, who will continue to transport patients to Morris Hospital unless it is determined the patient requires a trauma center and one is within 30 miles. Morris Hospital also informed the fire and ambulance districts that it will remain an EMS Resource Hospital and maintain medical radio control for the 18 Fire and EMS agencies that are part of the Morris Hospital EMS System.

“We understand that some will perceive this as a loss in local healthcare services,” said Dohm. “However, we want to assure the community that the care that we provide in our emergency room isn’t changing. Nor should the public do anything differently when seeking emergency care. Always call 9-1-1 for life threatening emergencies and continue to go to the emergency room of your choice for non-life threatening emergencies. As always, we remain committed to making Morris Hospital the emergency room of choice for our community.”

Serving patients from 28 locations, Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers includes the 89-bed Morris Hospital, as well as physician offices in Braidwood, Channahon, Diamond-Coal City, Dwight, Gardner, Marseilles, Mazon, Minooka, Morris, Newark, Ottawa, and Seneca. Through the services of over 1,900 healthcare professionals, physicians and volunteers, Morris Hospital provides lifesaving cardiac intervention, a radiation therapy center for cancer patients, Mako robotic-arm assisted surgery for orthopedics, a state-of-the-art intensive care unit, integrated behavioral health in the primary care setting, and an advanced level of emergency care around the clock. Morris Hospital is a Level II perinatal care provider and primary stroke center. The hospital is known for its compassionate and personalized approach to healthcare.