[Clinical pathway, quality circle and standard operating procedures as tools for quality management in the trauma suite].

In each hospital the trauma resuscitation room in emergency departments is one of the areas with the highest rate of critical incidents. Delayed and insufficient medical interventions have a high impact on negative patient outcomes. Anticipating and dealing with critical situations might reduce preventable errors in the treatment process. This can be achieved by implementing an algorithm-based structured work flow. In this context some elements of quality management are well-established in clinical practice. In the present study we describe the implementation of a clinical pathway and an interdisciplinary quality circle to improve management of the trauma patient.