A brief review of the Arkansas trauma system

Trauma care is a vital part of the US healthcare system, given that it is the leading cause of death for non-elderly individuals. The need for improved systems of trauma care—particularly in rural areas—has been acknowledged over recent years. Arkansas was one of several states to build a trauma system in the 2000s and demonstrated its economic and health benefits through research after implementation. In this article, we briefly review the history of rural trauma care in the United States leading up to the creation of the Arkansas Trauma System (ATS), discuss the development and components of the ATS, and focus on future directions and needs. The lessons learned from the system developed in Arkansas and the work yet to be done are generalizable to other states with large rural populations.