UCI Health Regional Burn Center reverified for commitment to high-quality care

Only program in county, 1 of 8 in state, to be verified by American Burn Association

Orange, Calif. — The UCI Health Regional Burn Center at UCI Medical Center in Orange has been reverified as an Adult and Pediatric Burn Center by the American Burn Association (ABA) through January 2028. 

The program is the only one in the county and one of just eight in California to have earned the three-year designation. ABA-verified burn centers have achieved the highest possible standards of treatment for patients who have survived burns, from injury to rehabilitation.

The burn center is nationally recognized for its innovative care programs, robust research, successful outcomes after severe burn injury and commitment to patients recovering from such injuries.

In 2024, the program admitted 281 adults and 98 children making it as one of the busiest years in recent memory.  The burn center provides treatment for burns of all types, including but not limited to flame, scald, contact, hot pavement, electrical, chemical and friction burns. Last year, the team also treated hundreds of outpatients, including nearly 1,500 adults and 525 children.

The team also cares for severe skin conditions, complex wounds and scar management.

Burn nursing excellence

For six consecutive years, the program has been one of the few burn units in the nation to have earned the Gold Beacon Award from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AANC) for its commitment to nursing excellence, including:

• Ongoing education and collaboration with the emergency department nursing team, including simulation-based training and active usage of the Unit Practice Council, a group of nurses who collaborate to improve patient care.
• Continuous quality improvement (QI), including initiatives to improve research productivity and build infrastructure within the interdisciplinary nursing team.
• Strong nursing team support, including a burn wound care team, a dedicated charge nurse and appropriate nurse-to-patient ratios.

Speech therapy is integrated throughout the practice, particularly in swallowing and cognitive assessments and treatment. The program has also started using 3D printing technology to create orthotics. For example, a patient who had lost part of his arm in a fire received a 3D-printed forearm prosthesis to assist him with the return to activities of daily living.

The center also offers additional support to patients through the Alisa Ann Ruth Burn Foundation, which offers peer support, emergency financial assistance, online support groups and more.

Leading research

Powered by the University of California, Irvine, the UCI Health burn program partners with leading clinical and scientific innovators on campus to provide the patients the most up-to-date treatments, such as laser therapy for burn scar management at UCI Health — Irvine.

The team is also at the forefront of leading-edge therapies, such as using 3D printers to build prosthetics for patient to aid in their recovery and rehabilitation. The UCI Health Regional Burn Center engages in clinical outcomes research with projects presented at national conferences and subsequently published in peer-review journals.