The University of Texas System Board of Regents approved $2.5 million to establish the Trauma Research and Combat Casualty Care Collaborative at UT Health San Antonio in partnership with the Department of Defense and University Health’s Level 1 Trauma Center at University Hospital.
The collaborative leverages longstanding partnerships with University Health and the Southwest Texas Regional Advisory Council, known as STRAC. It will be the first and only one of its kind in the United States, according to UT System.
Trauma is the leading cause of death and permanent disability in children and adults under 44 years of age. The collaborative, which is being called TRC4, will serve to address the critical need for improved trauma care in the United States — both on the battlefield and in the civilian sector — to dramatically improve the care, health outcomes and survival rate for trauma injuries.
“This trauma care research center will save lives and support our dedicated service members,” said UT System Chancellor James B. Milliken. “TRC4 will also create new commercialization and device development opportunities right here in Texas.”
The UT System Board of Regents’ $2.5 million investment in the new trauma care research center matches an initial in-kind commitment toward the project made by the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research. The UT System’s investment will cover early start-up costs for the collaborative, which includes hiring executive leadership and administrators, developing the TRC4 strategic plan, establishing the peer review process and providing initial research funding.
The establishment of TRC4 is the latest advancement to come from a partnership launched in 2021 between the UT System and the U.S. Army Futures Command/U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research. Subsequently, all UT institutions and Institute of Surgical Research leadership approved a legal framework that enables further expansion of their collaborative efforts. This framework was signed by Chancellor Milliken and the Army Futures Command in April 2022.
