News & Information

Governor Bill Owens proclaimed May as Colorado Trauma Awareness Month, a time to recognize the contributions of the state's nearly 6,000 emergency medical service providers and to elevate public awareness of ways to improve public health by reducing the impact of trauma in Colorado.

Considering that about 30,000 Coloradans annually are admitted to the hospital due to injury, this informatively preventive component of Colorado Trauma Awareness Month is as beneficial to the people of Colorado as is allocating sufficient resources to emergency medical services. It's also fitting that we pay a month-long debt of gratitude to the men and women who provide life-saving emergency medical services, most of whom are volunteers."

National and state figures underscore the high profile that preventive public awareness plays in Colorado Trauma Awareness Month, Benevento said. Nearly two-thirds of deaths among Coloradans ages 34 and younger are due to injury, according to the governor's proclamation, and unintentional injuries are the collective leading cause of death and disability for Americans ages 44 and younger. Motor vehicle crashes are the state's leading cause of injury-related deaths. Colorado Trauma Awareness Month coincides with a national recognition that Congress has proclaimed annually since 1988.

For more information about Colorado's Emergency Medical Services and Trauma Program, visit http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/tp