Today, the country's first ever regional trauma system was launched by Health Minister Tony Ryall at the Waikato Hospital. He stressed that the new system is expected to save a minimum of 21 lives across the Midland area each year.

The new system is basically a clinical program that connects multiple services from across the region with the main aim of providing the best possible care, which would lead to the best results for patients of trauma as well as their families.

Mr. Ryall shared that trauma injuries are currently the leading cause of death in the first 50 years of a person's life, and patients of trauma with multiple injuries end up becoming a much vulnerable group with complex requirements.

Dedicated and well trained trauma teams are now being commissioned in all Midland district health boards like Tairawhiti, Bay of Plenty, Lakes and Taranaki, who are all following in the footsteps of Waikato.

For many years now, the hospital has been using the trauma system, and Mr. Ryall has revealed that it has ended up saving about 14 lives every year.

"Waikato has halved the mortality rate of its severe trauma patients over the past years... the mortality rate for all trauma is now 0.9 percent", he said.