A Prosperous Culture

Pictured: Mark Gestring, M.D. receiving the FBI’s Directors Community Leadership Award

Serving Our Community Through Active Engagement

As the only Level I Trauma Center in New York State’s Finger Lakes Region, the Kessler Trauma Center at the University of Rochester is committed to providing the highest level of injury care available to those who need it.

Injury volumes initially dropped in March of 2020 as we dealt with the impact of the COVID pandemic, but by summer of that same year the region noted a historic increase in violence as well as traumatic injury in general.

According to Mark L. Gestring, M.D., F.A.C.S., Chief of the Division of Acute Care Surgery and Director of the Kessler Trauma Center, the trauma center experienced a 25% increase in severely injured patients of all types and a concomitant 30% increase in patients requiring emergent trauma operations. This was accompanied by a stunning 90% increase in gunshot injuries when compared to the year before.

“I have been part of the Rochester community for over two decades and I can’t remember a worse year”, says Dr. Gestring. “Homicide rates have spiked and gun violence has reached epidemic proportions. Since the Kessler Trauma Center covers a 17-county area, most trauma cases end up on our doorstep.” He adds that “most gun violence is senseless and can be prevented”. This is why Dr. Gestring and his Trauma Center team believe they have a civic responsibility to support the community through the many violence prevention programs they lead or participate in.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) presented Dr. Gestring with its Director’s Community Leadership Award for his dedication to providing extensive care and creative support to the Rochester community and its at-risk youth. Dr. Gestring actively participates with the FBI on the local Project Exile Advisory Board, which brings the community together with law enforcement of all levels as well as social service agencies to keep illegal guns off the street. A federal program developed in Virginia in 1997, the Rochester Project Exile Advisory Board has been in place for more than 20 years.

Rochester Youth Violence Partnership – Helping at-risk youth steer clear of violence.

The FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award also noted Dr. Gestring’s work with programs such as the Rochester Youth Violence Partnership (RYVP), a hospital-based violence intervention program he co-founded in 2006 along with Michael A. Scharf, M.D., Chief of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and pediatric social worker Jeff Rideout, M.S.W. The RYVP is a partnership headed by the Kessler Trauma Center and supported by dozens of local nonprofit, government and service-based organizations. Dr. Gestring and his colleagues initiated this program after noting that they were treating some of the same youths for gunshot wounds on a recurring basis, and sometimes their last visits were fatal wounds. The RYVP team meets monthly to discuss cases and designate resources to help youth stay on a violence-free path.

“Our collaboration with dozens of organizations in the Rochester region has allowed us to reach hundreds of young adults, helping them and their families understand that these injuries are not random and that actions can be taken to avoid further injury,” explains Dr. Gestring. “We have worked hard to develop a program that provides victims and their families with the resources they need to stay safe and to end the cycle of violence that frequently develops.”

Stop the Bleed® Initiative Saves Lives

Uncontrolled bleeding is the number one cause of preventable death after injury. Stop the Bleed®, a nationwide initiative championed by the American College of Surgeons, aims to put an end to bleeding deaths that result from everyday emergencies, as well as mass shootings and other mass casualty situations. Under the direction of Dr. Gestring and his outreach team, thousands of people in the region have been trained to recognize life threatening bleeding and to intervene to control bleeding until help arrives. In 2020, Dr. Gestring and his team identified ways to continue teaching this material during the pandemic while adhering to all local and state guidelines, allowing this important training to continue.

“With this training, we are empowering people to do something in the event of a bleeding emergency. The techniques are easy to learn and the equipment is easy to use, inexpensive and can save lives.”

Responsible Gun Ownership – Safeguarding guns to prevent injury

The Responsible Gun Ownership program, an initiative started in 2020, is directed at legal gun owners and focuses on safe gun storage, proper disposal of unwanted guns, prevention of gun theft and other safety concerns related to gun ownership. This program was developed in partnership with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and is presented regionally on a regular basis. “Handguns that are stolen often end up as crime guns once in circulation,” says Dr. Gestring. “We educate people about their responsibility as gun owners to keep their families and members of our community safe.”

ABOUT DR. GESTRING

Dr. Mark Gestring is the Medical Director of the Kessler Trauma Center and Chief of Acute Care Surgery at the University of Rochester. He is Professor of Surgery, Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Rochester School of Medicine.

Dr. Gestring is a member of the American College of Surgeons-Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT) where he is the immediate past chair of the EMS Committee. In that capacity, he worked closely with representatives from the national prehospital community to identify and address issues of common interest to those caring for the injured patient. Dr. Gestring is the current Chair of the ACS -COT Stop the Bleed Steering Committee.

At the state level, Dr Gestring is an elected representative to the New York State Trauma Advisory Committee. In addition, he serves as Chief Surgeon for the New York State Police Trooper Surgeon’s Group as well as Associate Medical Director for Mercy Flight Central.

A graduate of New Jersey Medical School, Dr. Gestring completed his surgical training at Brown University and his fellowship training in Trauma and Surgical Critical Care at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and is board certified by the American Board of Surgery in both Surgery and Surgical Critical Care.