(a) An individual shall be licensed by the Board of Medicine before practicing as a trauma technologist in the District of Columbia.

(b) An individual licensed to practice as a trauma technologist shall have the authority to:

(1) Identify respiratory emergencies and perform critical interventions with oxygen therapy equipment, including bag valve masks;

(2) Identify circulatory emergencies and perform critical interventions, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation;

(3) Identify, assess, and treat, as required, various eye injuries, soft tissue injuries, ligament and tendon injuries, musculoskeletal injuries, environmental emergencies, and exposure and reactions to poisons;

(4) Provide topical and infiltration application of a local anesthetic,

(5) Apply tourniquets, casts, immobilizers, and surgical dressings;

(6) Perform phlebotomy and insert intravenous catheters; and

(7) Suture lacerations and provide wound care.

(c) A trauma technologist shall not:

(1) Perform any surgical procedure independently;

(2) Have prescriptive authority; or

(3) Write any progress notes or orders on hospitalized patients.

(d) Telecommunication by a physician licensed to practice in the District of Columbia may suffice as a means for directing delegated acts for a trauma technologist who is under the indirect supervision of that physician.

(Mar. 25, 1986, D.C. Law 6-99, § 651; as added Jan. 25, 2014, D.C. Law 20-64, § 2(g), 60 DCR 16533; Feb. 22, 2019, D.C. Law 22-227, § 201, 66 DCR 197.)

The 2014 amendment by D.C. Law 20-64 added this section.