Henry Ford Providence Southfield Hospital Loses ER Level II Trauma Center Designation

Henry Ford Providence Southfield Hospital has lost its status as a Level II trauma center.  The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) designates the level of trauma care hospitals in the state can provide based on standards set by the American College of Surgeons. The designations range from Level I to Level IV:

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/oakland-county/2026/08/14/henry-ford-providence-southfield-hospital-trauma-designation/91303350007/

Regaining trauma certification 'big challenge' for Metro Detroit hospital
By Carol Thompson - August 14, 2026

Henry Ford Providence Southfield Hospital cannot accept trauma patients by ambulance as administrators work to restore the hospital's trauma designation, a Henry Ford Health executive said.

The hospital lost its trauma designation in mid-July and is appealing the decision. The change is temporary and unrelated to quality of care, said Dr. Adnan Munkarah, Henry Ford Health president of clinical enterprise and chief physician executive.

"Hospital leaders are currently working with the (American College of Surgeons), the state of Michigan and others to restore our ability to receive trauma patients via ambulance as soon as possible," he said in a statement emailed through a spokesperson.

Restoring the designation could be a "big challenge," said Kelsey Ostergren, senior director of health policy for the Michigan Health and Hospital Association.

Without its designation as a trauma facility, the hospital can accept and treat trauma patients who arrive on their own with injuries from things like gunshot wounds or car crashes, but not patients who arrive via ambulance.

That's because ambulance services rely on a state-approved list of trauma facilities to determine where to send patients.

Emergency medical workers assess patients in the field and then take them to the nearest hospital that's equipped to handle their needs, Ostergren said. Although a hospital with a Level III trauma designation may be closer, an ambulance team may decide to drive a longer distance to go to a Level II hospital if the patient's needs are more severe.

Because Henry Ford Providence Southfield Hospital isn't on the list, ambulances won't take patients there, Ostergren said.

Retrieving trauma designation will be 'big challenge' for Henry Ford

The loss presents a problem for the Southfield hospital as Henry Ford tries to restore its designation as a trauma facility.

The American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma verifies Michigan's Level I, II and III trauma facilities, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. MDHHS then approves those verifications.

Verification involves an external review of each facility's capability and performance in providing trauma care. Hospitals have to do things like submit examples of trauma cases they have treated, Ostergren said. That's harder to do when trauma patients aren't arriving by ambulance.

"Losing a (trauma designation) status and trying to regain it is tough when you have to prove you're taking care of trauma patients, yet you can't accept trauma patients via ambulance," Ostergren said. "It will take them longer to accrue that volume of trauma patients they need to go back to ACS and get that trauma designation."

Munkarah said Henry Ford officials are concerned that losing the Southfield hospital's designation as a trauma facility "could impact how quickly our community receives care in critical moments."

"We are actively pursuing an appeal and we are confident the matter will be resolved shortly," Munkarah said.

Ostergren said the ACS reviews hospitals' trauma designation status every three years. The redesignation process is high-stakes and requires a lot of work from the hospital.

"It's incredibly administratively heavy for hospitals, which is where I think the Henry Ford team ran into some challenges," she said. "While they still are operating at that Level II trauma level, it's unfortunate that administrative piece has cost them at least temporarily the designation. I know our team has been working really closely with them to figure out how we can support getting them back up and running and getting their trauma designation."

The hospital's emergency department treated more than 64,000 cases in 2025, Munkarah said. No jobs were affected by the loss in designation.