Heather Rhodes

Education

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1998 to 2000:

AASc, Radiologic Technology, Northern Kentucky Univeristy, Highland Heights, Kentucky

2012 to 2014:

BHSc, Health Science, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, Kentucky

2014 to 2017:

Dual DHS/MHS, Health Science, Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

2017 to 2022:

PhD, Health Science, Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Work Experience

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2019 to 2023:

Trauma Research Specialist, Grand Strand Medical Center, Myrtle Beach, SC

Statement

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I am a research scholar and administrator with 23 years of professional experience in research, teaching, and clinical development. I possess a proven understanding of operational management, scientific exploration, and policy development. With my strong ability to collaborate with colleagues and other professionals to define best practices and procedures, I lead teams that streamline efficient clinical pathways. I have a strong focus on subjects relating to traumatic brain injury (TBI) and optimizing rural trauma care. Much of my research aims to improve guidelines in trauma and acute care surgery and describe rural trauma disparities to improve the quality of health care and highlight the unique differences in the rural patient populations. The databases that I primarily work with include the Trauma Registry, the American College of Surgeons Trauma Quality Improvement Program (ACS-TQIP), and Electronic Medical Records (EMR). My passions lie in the design of efficient data surveillance using the Trauma Registry to benchmark in real time against TQIP to optimize rural trauma outcomes and identify process pain points. This surveillance database is than used to run analytics to produce research publications in support of research efforts for ACS Level I trauma accreditation.

Research Interests

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Ongoing and recently completed projects that I would like to highlight include: the use of the ACS-TQIP dataset for national analysis of outcomes associated with laparotomy versus non-operative management among cirrhotic trauma patients with blunt injuries. Further the ACS-TQIP national analysis of racial disparity as an independent factor for severe injury versus severe isolated TBI among those administered early versus late VTE prophylaxis as well as outcomes (primarily mortality) among those patient groups. Lastly the ACS-TQIP national outcomes of adult isolated severe TBI with ICP monitoring versus a severe injury non-TBI group with a primary outcome of in-hospital mortality. A further analysis of the ICP monitoring groups will analyze worsening head bleeds (defined as craniotomy) among the early verses late ICP monitoring subgroups.

Presentations

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2023:

Predictors of Facial Fractures in Trauma Patients: Retrospective Review at a Level I Trauma Center, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Age Effects in Facial Fracture Trauma: Disparities in Multi-System Injuries in Non-Fall Related Trauma, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Traumatic Brain Injury Under Triage Risk: A Rural Trauma System Experience, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Adult Traumatic Brain Injury and Likelihood of Routine Discharge: Do Comorbidities Matter?, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Ambulance Response in Eight Minutes or Less: Are Comorbidities a Factor, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Can Pre-Hospital Medical Management Predict In-Hospital Mortality in Trauma?, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Predicting Early Versus Late In-Hospital Mortality in the Trauma Population, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

In-Hospital Mortality After Massive Transfusion and Motorcycle Trauma May Predict Highest Injury Severity in a Rural Level I Trauma System , Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Missed Opportunity in Primary and Secondary Survey in the Severly Injured Requiring Emergency Laparotomy, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2023:

Can Excess Alcohol Consumption During a Pandemic Year Present with Higher Incidence in Trauma Severity, such as Penetrating Injuries Needing Massive Transfusion, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2022:

Proposed Expansion of a Helicopter Auto Launch Program to Shorten Scene to Arrival Time, Southeastern Trauma Symposium

2022:

Predictive Hemorrhagic Death in a Destination Community, Southeastern Trauma Symposium

2022:

Pre-Hospital Care in a Rural Trauma System Lecture, Southeastern Trauma Symposium

2022:

A Clinical Decision Rule: Predicting Complicated Mild TBI in Adolescent Trauma to Aide in the Clinical-Decision Making of CT Imaging (Accepted but travel not approved), West Pediatric Trauma

2022:

A Description of Adolescent Mild Traumatic Brain Injury at a Pediatric Level II Trauma Center. (Accepted but travel not approved), The Joint Conference on Brain Injury

2022:

How to Organize and Relay Scholarly Activity During COVID-19 on the ACS Virtual Platform: The Golden Standard in Level I Verification, Trauma Center Association of America

2022:

Do Level of Trauma Activations, Demographics, Comorbidities, and Injury Patterns Determine Outcome?, Critical Care Congress

2022:

Is Age and Injury Severity the Wining Predictor of Complicated Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in Adolescent Trauma? A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study at a Pediatric Trauma Center, John M Templeton Jr Pediatric Trauma Symposium

2022:

Is Loss of Consciousness a Losing Battle in Predicting Hemorrhage in Pediatric TBI? A Pediatric Trauma Center's Objective to Further Improve CT Utilization in the Pediatric Population, John M Templeton Jr Pediatric Trauma Symposium

2022:

Is Elderly Fall Trauma an Unappreciated Event Driving Under Triage in a Trauma System? A Retrospective Review at an ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2022:

Alcohol Related Traumatic Falls: Retrospective Look at Injury Patterns, Severity, and Outcome., Southeastern Surgical Congress

2022:

Is Late Administration of Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis in Elderly Trauma a Solid Decision? A Retrospective Review at an ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2022:

What is the Best Method in Identifying Under or Over Triage? An ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center Operation Experience, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2022:

Circling the Drain: A Retrospective Review of Trauma Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease: Should ISS Include Modifiers?, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2022:

Associated Co-Morbidities Among Elderly Trauma Patients with Isolated Hip Fractures: Best Practice Initiative for Perioperative Medical Optimization in Fragility Fractures of the Hip, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2022:

Routine Repeat Brain CT Scanning is Unnecessary in Older Patients with GCS 14-15 and Normal Initial Brain CT Scan Regardless of Preinjury Antithrombotic Use: A Multicenter Study of 3157 Patients, Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma

2021:

Driven By Instinct. Differences in Mode of Transportation Among Adult and Pediatric Trauma Patients, Pediatric Trauma Society

2021:

To CT or Not to CT: A Level II Pediatric Trauma Center's Aim to Reduce Ionizing Radiation in Pediatrics and Adolescents, Pediatric Trauma Society

2021:

Reduce the Rads: A Trauma System Intiative to Decrease CT Utilization in the Pediatric Trauma Population, Western Pediatric Trauma Conference

2021:

A Description of Adolescents Mild Traumatic Brain Injury at a Pediatric Level II Trauma Center, World Congress on Brain Injury

2021:

Characterizes of Adolescent Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: A Retrospective Review at an ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2021:

Are We There Yet?: A Review of Transport Methods in Pedicatric Trauma, Southeastern Sugical Congress

2021:

Characteristics of Isolated Hip Fractures in the Elderly Trauma: A Retrospective Review at an ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2021:

Trend Characteristics in Moped Related Trauma: A Retrospective Review at an ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center, Southeastern Surgical Congress

2021:

Scoop and Run, Not Stay and Play: Does Limiting Prehospital Care in Pediatric Trauma Offer Survival Advantage?, Grand Strand Medical Center Poster Day

2021:

Descriptive Trends in Moped Trauma: An Aging Population with Increased Ethanol Consumption, Grand Strand Medical Center Poster Day

2021:

Emergent Exploratory Laparotomy and Thoracotomy in the Critically Injured: Possible Occult Findings on Post-Operative CT, Grand Strand Medical Center Poster Day

2021:

A Lesson to Lessen Adolescent mTBI Complications: A Retrospective Review at an ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center, Grand Strand Medical Center Poster Day

2021:

Characteristics of Isolated Hip Fractures in the Elderly (Greater than 65 years) Trauma: A Retrospective Review at an ACS Verified Level I Trauma Center, Grand Strand Medical Center Poster Day

2021:

Getting Help and Getting it Fast: Proposing an EMS Auto Launch Program for Time Critical Diagnoses, Grand Strand Medical Center Poster Day

2021:

The Fallacy of Safety During Quarantine: Increased Domestic Violence During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Critical Care Congress (SCCM)

2021:

Pandemic Paradox: Patterns of Traumatic Injuries During COVID-19, Despite the Safe Haven of Home, Critical Care Congress (SCCM)

2020:

Trauma Trends During the Initial Peak of the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Midst of Lockdown: Experiences from a Rural Trauma Center, SOAR Conference

2020:

COVID-19 Resilience for Survival: Occurrence of Domestic Violence During Lockdown as a Rural ACS Verified Level One Trauma Center, International Conference on Multidisciplinary Studies Cambridge

2020:

Patterns of Violence Affecting Children and Young Adults During Spring Break in a Vacation Town, Critical Care Congress (SCCM)

2020:

Retrospective Review of EMS Resuscitation of the Severely Injured Trauma Patient in the Pre-Hospital Setting with Respect to Pre-Hospital IV Fluid Use in Shock and the Impact on Patient Outcomes, Critical Care Congress (SCCM)

2020:

Get'em to the Chopper, Critical Care Congress (SCCM)

2019:

Incidence of Aspirin Effect in an Anticipated Aspirin Negative Elderly Population, SOAR Conference