Trauma: Life in the E.R.

Every spring, the city of Indianapolis roars to life with the legendary Indy 500. Hundreds of thousands of eager fans — enough to fill ten Super Bowls — gather around the track on race day. The preparations for the Indy 500, however, are nearly as outsized as the race itself. A week before the checkered flag drops, downtown Indianapolis swells with fans for the annual Indy 500 parade. Locals revel in the roar of engines and the swirl of pageantry, bursting with pride at their celebrated race. The parade, like the many events leading up to the race itself, also reflects a city obsessed with speed. Fast times sometimes lead to sudden tragedies, and the doctors and nurses at Wishard Memorial Hospital know this all too well. During the Indy 500 race week, they prepare themselves for anything, knowing that the imminent arrival of millions of race fans can propel the trauma rooms from zero to overflowing in what seems like the blink of an eye.

A centuries-old city on Long Island Sound, New Haven is a bustling port with a storied past. Once a colonial whaling town, New Haven's most famous landmark — Yale University — continues to thrive today. A Level One trauma center, Yale-New Haven Hospital serves the city and the neighboring suburban and rural communities of southern Connecticut. The emergency staff here cares for New Haven’s most dire medical cases. In this episode they treat: a hospital orderly who is the victim of crossfire from a shootout; a man who collides down an embankment after losing control of his car; a man who is impaled by a branch while cutting down a tree; and a groundskeeper who is thrown from his tractor.

Once a barren desert, Las Vegas is now a community of more than a million people living their dreams. When dreams suddenly turn into nightmares, the surrounding community looks to University Medical Center — the only Level One trauma center in the entire state of Nevada. In this episode, it's business as usual as the staff of UMC fights to save lives including: a teenager hit by an ambulance; a six-year-old boy hit by a gravel truck; a young girl who shoots herself in the hand; and a man shot with a BB gun while trying to protect his sister from an ex-boyfriend.

University Medical Center in Las Vegas is the only Level One Trauma Center within ten thousand miles. In an effort to grow with the nation's fastest growing city, UMC has constructed a brand new, computerized, state of the art emergency department. It has been scheduled to open in a few days — the staff is excited and nervous but positive that the change will be interesting. Some of the staff members that we will focus on are: Dr. Angeline Fitzgerald, attending physician in emergency medicine for 8 years. Originally from Albuquerque, Fitzy, as she's known, has freedom to make time for her kids; Dr. Frank Goudreau is a fourth year orthopedic resident who misses his family in Michigan; Bill Peabody is, in his own words, an excellent nurse. He's been at UMC for 4 years and was inspired to become a nurse while studying to be a monk; and Dr. Ron Dean is a nine year veteran emergency medicine doctor.

The people of Dallas are full of pride and courage. Like their cattlemen and gunfighter ancestors, they stand tall in the face of adversity. This same strength of character often leads these people to risky behavior. The staff at Baylor University Medical Center stands larger than life by restoring their health and independence. In this episode, the medical team handles the following cases: a 21-year-old rodeo champion whose bull bucked him off and stomped on his leg; a combative 19-year-old assault victim who may have a serious head injury; a 60-year-old man injured when a house collapsed on his head and leg; a 39-year-old motor scooter rider who wiped out and is bleeding internally; a 3-year-old suffering from seizures; a 26-year-old man seriously injured after a motor vehicle accident; and one of the doctors' own sons, who is treated for a chin laceration.

Seven of the nation's major highways pass through downtown Indianapolis, bringing half of the country's population within a day's drive. Those open roads have paved the way to a host of urban problems … and forever changed the once-wholesome character of this heartland city. A consequence of Indianapolis' rapid growth has been a trail of blood in the heartland. The city's oldest and last surviving public hospital, Wishard Memorial, is there to close the wounds and, often, provide a refuge. In this episode, the medical team helps: a woman shot four times at close range by her lover; a man left severely bleeding from gunshot wounds to his stomach; two brothers rushed into trauma with potentially fatal gun injuries; one lucky man who walked out with minor injures after a bullet grazes his neck; and a medical mystery involving a woman who shows symptoms of both MS and Lupus.

One hundred miles northeast of New York City on the Long Island Sound lies the busy port city of New Haven, Connecticut. Home to one of the most prestigious colleges in the world, Yale University, it is a city of contrasts — from centuries-old, abandoned industrial plants to gleaming high-tech office towers, to poverty-stricken inner city neighborhoods, to the stately homes surrounding Yale. Serving the urban, suburban and rural communities, the E.R. team at Yale-New Haven Hospital faces such trauma cases as multiple car crashes, farm equipment accidents and inner city gangland shootings nearly every day. In this episode, the team treats: a man who jumps out of a third story window to escape a fire; a young woman who has been struck by a hit-and-run driver; a smoke-inhalation patient whose condition suddenly becomes life-threatening; a teenager hit by a car and thrown off his bike; an elderly woman with a neck laceration; and a construction worker who has become paralyzed after being struck by a 7,000-pound steel beam.

Las Vegas, Nevada is one of America's fastest-growing cities — it has blossomed from a dusty outpost en route to California to one of the country's premiere vacation destinations. Greater Las Vegas' variety, color, and opportunities attracts people from all over the country. Anyone seriously injured in any type of trauma, from western Arizona to eastern California, is rushed to University Medical Center. In this episode, the emergency staff helps: two alleged gang members shot during a drive-by; a child injured after falling from a second story balcony; a man shot in the head and back; a young man who has been shot eight times; and a truck driver whose rig fell 80 feet from a highway overpass.

Originally a major crossroad of the old west cattle trails, Dallas is now a high-powered center of the world's financial, technology and petroleum industries. The doctors and nurses at Baylor University Medical Center are the heroes of this post-modern western society. They possess the spirit and strength necessary to handle the high volume of cases that come their way, including: a man shot in the chest during an incident with police; a young man with a gunshot wound to the head; a man who cut off two of his fingertips in a meat slicer; a man with stab wounds directly over his heart; a drug user who overdosed on heroin; and a young man struck by a van while trying to cross Dallas' busiest highway on foot.

Like the mythological phoenix, the doctors and nurses of Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center have come to the Level One Trauma Center to jump-start their personal and professional lives. They pursue diverse goals but share a dedication to medicine.

At Houston's Memorial Hermann Emergency Trauma Department, a dedicated staff treats the rowdy remains of the wild west. A teen is broadsided by a pick-up; a child is attacked by a Rottweiler; victims are injured in a three-car pile-up.

Travel to one of the busiest trauma units in the nation at Louisville's University Hospital. With the only Level One Trauma Center for hundreds of miles, the staff sees their share of domestic violence from the isolated rural areas surrounding Louisville.

Denver Health Medical Center's trauma unit is equipped to handle disasters of any magnitude including Columbine High School shooting victims that were treated there. Join staff as they treat car wreck victims, gunshot wounds and snowboarding injuries.

Oakland, CA, is home to a large population of people struggling with poverty and substance abuse and has more than a hundred gangs. Although they are on a low budget, the ER at Highland Hospital will manage to treat a wide range of injuries and people.

Many people leave Pittsburgh but many people return for the rivers, fields and charm of the city. Pittsburgh's Allegheny General Hospital (AGH) is the city's finest level one trauma center and the staff do their best to treat every patient like family.

Though gruff and weary on the outside, the trauma team at Legacy Emanuel Hospital in Portland, Oregon, have a deep love and dedication for their work. When patients need it the most, their skill and humor can heal almost any wound.

Crisis is the mode of operation at the University of Texas San Antonio Hospital. A family is injured in a minivan roll-over, an elderly rancher is trampled by a bull, and one of the trauma team's own is stuck by a needle filled with a patient's blood.

Pittsburgh is ranked the safest U.S. city, but this doesn't count the injuries that people inflict upon each other and themselves. The Allegheny General's trauma team is pushed to its limit with head injuries, brain surgery and a horse attack.

Within an hour of Portland, Oregon, one can ski Mount Hood, surf the Oregon Coast or sail the Columbia River Gorge. But alcohol and recklessness can turn sport into nightmare, and the staff of Legacy Emanuel Hospital must pick up the pieces.

Doctors at the Elvis Presley Trauma Center in Memphis treat some unique patients and injuries, including a woman who plunges a butcher knife into her chest while peeling potatoes, and a tattooed teen who spits out a metal stud that pierced his tongue.

At Detroit Receiving Hospital, four young trauma doctors struggle to provide hope while mending damaged bodies. Their work is as much about saving a faltering city as it is about saving lives.

For two female doctors at King Drew Medical Center in South Central Los Angeles, the line between professionalism and personal involvement is shattered when a crack baby and a toddler nearly drowned in a swimming pool are the patients.

The University of Tennessee Medical Center mirrors the contrasts of its home city, Memphis. A traditional Southern town, Memphis has become a hub for digital technology, but when tragedy strikes, families close ranks in support.

Detroit Receiving Hospital is under constant barrage of medical emergencies and trauma patients. The trauma team runs like a well-tuned engine, adeptly handling everything that comes through the door.

The wealthy and prestigious image of Los Angeles is a stark contrast to the reality of daily life at King Drew Medical Center in South Central LA. Dedicated doctors treat a never-ending stream of patients struggling to survive on the streets.

Nashville's Vanderbilt University Medical Center is the setting for family drama when victims of domestic violence are treated for life-threatening wounds.

At the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, learn what it takes to be an ER doctor. The skills include dealing with life and death decisions, working in controlled chaos, and handling tragedy.

Las Vegas is the fastest growing city in America. People come for work, fame and fortune, or to retire. Get an up close look at the staff and their work at the Las Vegas University Medical Center ER.

Each member of the trauma team at Vanderbilt University Medical Center has their own approach to their work. Meet this diverse group--from the mentoring head of the ER to the insecure resident.

Mayhem California-style is part of life at the UC Medical Center in Sacramento, California. Many of the patients were in the wrong place at the wrong time. The staff makes these situations their work.

Las Vegas is the place Americans go to take chances, but those risks aren't always at the gaming tables. The University Medical Center deals with trauma victims from the streets, highways, and desert.