By Donna De Marco
Originally published November 2007
 
     It’s just 60 minutes but it’s the most crucial time for someone who has been severely injured.
     The Golden Hour, a term coined by University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center founder R Adams Cowley, refers to the critical time during which a trauma patient must get treatment to improve their chances of survival.
     “Trauma is a time-related disease,” said Dr. Thomas M. Scalea, physician-in-chief. “The clock starts ticking at the time of impact.”
     And with a 97-percent success rate, Shock Trauma is continually beating the clock — helping patients who didn’t expect that day they would be struggling to stay alive.
     “This is tragedy central,” Scalea said. “No one got up today and said ‘oh good, it’s my day to go to Shock Trauma.’”
     The following are just three examples of some of the patients Scalea and his team helped “beat the clock.”

     *George L. Doetsch Jr., chairman of Apple Ford in Columbia, was a firm believer in Shock Trauma even before it saved his life.
     As a board member for 10 years, Doetsch had countless visits to Shock Trauma, but in 2005, after being thrown from a horse, Doetsch visited as a patient.
     Within days, Doetsch, with broken ribs and fractured bones in his face, went home. But a little more than a week later he suffered a stroke.
     He was rushed again to Shock Trauma.
     “I was gone,” Doetsch said. “They rescued me from total death.”  
     Doetsch — who couldn’t walk or talk — was told he would likely be in bed the rest of his life. He spent nine days at Shock Trauma and months more at other hospitals.
     He flew his airplane in January.

     *Carol Weissbrod didn’t know much about Shock Trauma other than it existed. That was until her 16-year-old daughter, Allie Gold, suffered a brain injury after falling off a golf cart in Gibson Island. Allie was airlifted to Shock Trauma; a decision Carol said saved Allie’s life.
     Allie underwent emergency surgery to release pressure in her brain. She was also positioned on a tilt table, which raised her body into an upright position to relieve head pressure and help her organs function better.
     She spent four weeks at Shock Trauma and then underwent intense rehabilitation.
     “What was notable about Shock Trauma was they never gave up on her,” Carol said.
     Allie is now a freshman at Vanderbilt University.

     *Justin Breitenbach was in a severe car accident in July 2005. The 17-year-old had major brain and lung injuries, but more serious was a rupture in his aorta, the body’s largest artery.
     “The majority of that Golden Hour was with the Anne Arundel County Fire Department and Shock Trauma,” said Brenda Breitenbach, Justin’s mother. “They were so determined to save his life.”
     Justin was in a coma for 18 days and underwent several surgeries.
     He spent 30 days at Shock Trauma, before going to Kernan Hospital, where he learned how to walk and talk again.
     Today, Justin, 19, lives a fully functional life but still needs some assistance, Brenda said.
     “He’s proud of his scars,” she added. “He looks at them as signs of survival