ATCN Program

The Advanced Trauma Care for Nurses (ATCN) course is taught concurrently with the Advanced Trauma Life support (ATLS) for physicians. This program has been endorsed by the American College of Surgeons, Committee on Trauma, MD Chapter. Benefits of ATCN include an educational, collaborative, synchronized team approach to trauma care with the participants of the concurrently taught ATLS course.

ATCN was developed to teach established standards of trauma care and practical, life-saving skills. The course is designed for experienced nurses working in the prehospital setting, emergency department, critical care unit, and operating room who wish to increase their knowledge and practical skills in managing critically injured trauma patients.

1. Demonstrate concepts and principles of primary and secondary patient assessment;
2. Establish management priorities in a trauma situation;
3. Demonstrate management priorities necessary when dealing with the trauma patient.

The course includes didactic presentations on initial assessment, airway management, abdominal trauma, thoracic trauma, shock, head and spinal cord trauma, burns, extremity trauma, pediatric trauma, trauma in pregnancy, and stabilization and transportation.

The ATCN skill stations are as follows: Initial Assessment & Management (Practice & Testing), Airway Management, Hemorrhagic Shock, Pediatric Trauma, Head Trauma, Spine& Extremity Immobilization, ATCN Pretest Review, ATCN Triage Scenario Discussion.

The Society of Trauma Nurses is the national oversight organization for ATCN. The ATCN program verifies successful completion of the ATCN course and provides continuing education credit for completion of a course. STN does not certify or credential nurses. To learn more about ATCN or STN, visit the STN home page at: www.traumanurses.org