DSTC Courses- Trauma Center Association of America (TCAA), Inc.

Definitive Surgical Trauma Care Course™ (DSTC™)

Introduction

The DSTC™ Course was originally designed for surgeons and surgical trainees, by surgeons. Many situations require specialist trauma surgical expertise, yet because of local conditions this is simply not available. Its intention is not to duplicate ATLS®, nor to provide an in-depth course in surgery, but rather to teach those techniques particularly applicable to the patient who requires surgery and intensive care for major trauma, in a setting where such care is not commonly practiced or even necessarily available. At the same time, trauma care is changing all the time, and this course also serves as an update of knowledge and information in the field of trauma care. For many years Operating Room nurses have contributed to the DSTC™ course, sometimes informally but increasingly as an integrated part of DSTC™ with a specific program designed for OR nurses. Similarly, in some countries a component of care relevant to anesthetists has been developed by anesthetists and is now being integrated into DSTC™. This allows a more realistic experience for the entire team and provides the opportunity for anesthetists to learn technical and resuscitation skills as well. With the whole OR team involved in the same training course the potential to maximize the learning is optimized.

The DSTC™ Course is an intensive 2 or 3-day course comprising lectures, interactive case discussions and laboratory based surgical skills training.

Program Description:

Surgical decision making in complex scenarios
Operative technique in critically ill trauma patients
Hands on practical experience with experienced instructors
Insight into difficult trauma situations with learned techniques of hemorrhage control and the ability to handle major thoracic, cardiac and abdominal injuries

Visit this page on the IATSIC website for complete information on the DSTC™ Courses.

The DSTC™ Course is the intellectual property and a registered Trademark (TM) of the International Association for Trauma Surgery and Intensive Care (IATSIC). IATSIC is an Integrated Society of the International Society of Surgery (ISS/SIC) based in Zurich, Switzerland.

Additional Information

TCAA’s role for the DSTC™ Courses in the United States

The TCAA has entered into a joint endeavor with IATSIC for the sole purpose of bringing the IATSIC DSTC™ to the USA. TCAA will place all relevant material and upcoming courses on the TCAA website. The TCAA has an MOU with IATSIC to run courses in the USA. This will provide a conduit for local organizations to hold the DSTC™ without any operational or fiscal responsibilities for the course. All courses will be provided by the Local Organization with oversight by IATSIC and in collaboration with the TCAA. The local organization will be responsible for all course coordination to include all costs and expenses that arise out of the course.

How to apply to hold a DSTC?

Contact the TCAA prior to your submitting an application to IATSIC of your intentions to hold a DSTC™.

The TCAA will request an MOU between the local organization and the TCAA to affirm roles and responsibilities. The MOU will Include, but is not limited to, the below terms.

Local Organization will be responsible for conducting courses in collaboration with TCAA and IATSIC which includes acknowledgments (i.e., logos)
Local Organization will conduct courses in compliance with IATSIC and DSTC™ course standards, using provided course materials
Local Organization will be responsible for all course coordination (application, provision, and post-course documentation) and course operation finances
Local Organization will provide TCAA members a 10% discount on registration fees