Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) is a training program for physicians in the management of acute trauma cases, developed by the American College of Surgeons. Similar programs exist for nurses (ATCN) and paramedics (PTLS). The program has been adopted worldwide in over 40 countries,sometimes under the name of Early Management of Severe Trauma (EMST), especially outside North America. Its goal is to teach a simplified and standardized approach to trauma patients. Originally designed for emergency situations where only one doctor and one nurse are present, ATLS is now widely accepted as the standard of care for initial assessment and treatment in trauma centers. The premise of the ATLS program is to treat the greatest threat to life first. It also advocates that the lack of a definitive diagnosis and a detailed history should not slow the application of indicated treatment for life-threatening injury, with the most time-critical interventions performed early. However, there is mixed evidence to show that ATLS improves patient outcomes.
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