HISTORY
DEVELOPMENT OF THE ETC:
Good trauma care matters. In Europe, group of experts in trauma patient management recognised the need for an internationally certified trauma life support course. Thereupon, the idea of introducing ETC on the scene was set in motion, aiming to teach healthcare professionals the key principles of the initial care of severely injured patients. It was important to refine the educational concept and address the varying European teaching environments.
In 2002 the Italian Resuscitation Council invited an international group of experts to Bologna (Italy). This group has set the scene for the development of the ETC.
A series of four pilot courses were used to evaluate the feasibility and the acceptability of this novel course model. The first pilot ETC was held in Valletta (Malta) in 2006 on invitation of the Maltese Resuscitation Council with an international faculty from Belgium, Germany, Italy, Malta, Portugal and UK.
Subsequently, the course was further developed and piloted in Rome (Italy), Stavanger (Sweden) and again Valletta (Malta). During this process a strong emphasis on non-technical skills was introduced. The first official ETC was held in 2008 in Ghent (Belgium). In the following years the ETC has grown rapidly with now fully established programmes in more than 10 countries.
|
Pilot |
Date |
Venue |
Course |
Observers |
Financial or organisational support |
|
Valletta
|
November 2006 |
Non-educational centre |
Provider |
Associations of Surgeons, Anaesthesiologists and Orthopaedic Surgeons of Malta, Maltese Resuscitation Council |
Association of Surgeons of Malta, Maltese Resuscitation Council |
|
Stavanger
|
May 2007 |
Simulation centre |
Provider |
ESA, ESTES, ERC, ITC, Norwegian Society of Trauma Surgery, University of Stockholm, Finnish Resuscitation Council |
European Resuscitation Council, The Laerdal Foundation, Scandinavian Update 2007 |
|
Rome
|
November 2007 |
Non-educational centre |
Provider Instructor |
IRC, EuSEM, ESTES, ERC, German Society of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, ESICM |
Italian Resuscitation Council, European Resuscitation Council |
|
Valletta
|
March 2008 |
Conference centre |
Provider Instructor |
University Santander |
Association of Surgeons of Malta |
|
Ghent Inaugural Course |
May 2008 |
Military barracks |
Provider |
ERC, ITC, BRC |
The Belgian Armed Forces, European Resuscitation Council, Laerdal Medical |
The whole process was supervised by professional educators, experienced in adult education, a factor considered essential for the development of the ETC. The educators helped to develop the team teaching techniques and gave essential feedback during the pilot period. During the implementation of national ETC programmes, the educators helped to train newly recruited instructors in order to maintain consistency in teaching.
At the same time the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) has set up the European Trauma Working Group in collaboration with the ESTES (European Society of Trauma and Emergency Surgery), EuSEM (European Society of Emergency Medicine) and ESA (European Society of Anaesthesiology), as an independent group of experts in the field to devise the course.
The ETC was officially launched in 2008, during ERC 9th Scientific Congress 'Resuscitation 2008 - an insight into the Science of Resuscitation'.