HUNTSVILLE – Thirty years ago, Huntsville Hospital launched a new kind of lifesaving mission, one that would come to define emergency care across North Alabama. What began in 1995 with a single trauma surgeon, Dr. Rony Najjar, has grown into a fully staffed Level I Trauma Center serving 11 counties and treating more than 50,000 patients since its inception.
Najjar, who founded the trauma program after completing advanced trauma training in Miami, called the anniversary “a blessing and a milestone” for a team that has evolved alongside technology and medicine.
“Trauma touches every part of the hospital,” Najjar said. “It’s not one or two people; it’s a humongous team. The key driver from day one has been patient care. What’s best for the patient is what drives every decision.”
Now supported by 150 trauma professionals available each day, the Huntsville Hospital Trauma Program treats an average of five critical patients daily while maintaining the highest readiness level for severe, life-threatening injuries. Over three decades, the program has expanded in both capability and scope and earned a reputation for excellence that Najjar compared to military precision.
“Think of us as the special ops of medicine,” he said. “When seconds count, we’re the ones jumping in.”
The trauma team is remarkable not only in skill but also for the red scrubs worn by the hospital’s elite trauma nurses. Known around the ER as the “red shirts,” these nurses are the only ones at Huntsville Hospital authorized to wear red, a mark of both skill and respect.
Trauma Program Manager Kevin Paschal likened their role to a specialized military unit.
“They’re the Navy SEALs of nursing,” he said. “It takes years of experience, advanced training, and rigorous testing to earn those red scrubs. When they walk into a room, everyone knows the level of expertise they bring.”
Earning the red scrubs requires at least two to three years of training, including hands-on simulations and testing in front of trauma surgeons. The process is intense, but Paschal said that’s part of what gives the team its strength.
“They’re not just trauma nurses,” he said. “They’re leaders throughout the ER. There’s a lot of pride in those red scrubs. They’ve been earned through skill, sacrifice, and a commitment to every patient who comes through that door.”
From one doctor on call 30 days a month to a multidisciplinary team spanning the emergency department, operating rooms, and intensive care units, Huntsville Hospital’s trauma program has come a long way since 1995. But Najjar said its mission remains the same: to be ready for anything.
“We’ve come a long way in 30 years, but we’re not slowing down,” he said. “Our goal is to stay at the top of the pyramid, to keep pushing forward, because every second, every decision, and every life matters.”
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