The American College of Surgeons (ACS) has long advocated for the creation of a US National Trauma System to improve quality of care, decrease inequities, and save lives as one of its top legislative priorities, part of which involves the creation of a trauma research plan.

In response to the 2016 report from the National Academies on the need for a National Trauma System, a National Trauma Research Action Plan (NTRAP) has been developed with grant support from the US Department of Defense. This project was executed by the Coalition for National Trauma Research (CNTR)-a research coordinating center of which the ACS Committee on Trauma is a core member—and has three specific aims:

AIM 1 – Perform a gap analysis of military and civilian trauma research to identify priorities across the continuum of care
AIM 2 – Define optimal metrics to assess long-term functional outcomes in injured patients following hospital discharge
AIM 3 – Identify trauma research regulatory barriers, develop best practices for investigators, and collaborate with federal entities to define optimal endpoints for clinical trauma research

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