What Central Ohio Trauma System does

Central Ohio Trauma System (COTS) is a non-profit healthcare coalition headquartered at 1390 Dublin Road, Columbus, Ohio, operating as an affiliate of the Columbus Medical Association. The organization coordinates emergency preparedness, trauma system management, and real-time emergency department capacity across Central, Southeast, and Southeast Central Ohio, serving acute care hospitals, EMS agencies, public safety answering points, and public health partners.

COTS's core product is the Real Time Activity Status (RTAS) system, a web-based platform that allows participating emergency departments to notify public and private EMS agencies when an ED is overly busy and to request that incoming patients be diverted to less busy facilities. Beyond RTAS, COTS provides Emergency Preparedness and Response coordination across the region, Trauma Services including a regional trauma registry with multi-year data, and Educational resources. The platform architecture is described as a web-based application rather than a full-stack interoperability suite, with the differentiator being its integration into the workflows of 60+ participating hospitals and EMS agencies rather than underlying technical complexity.

The business model is a membership and funder-supported non-profit structure. COTS does not disclose pricing; services are provided to member hospitals and public safety agencies, with revenue supported by member dues, funder contributions, and the CMA affiliate structure. COTS maintains no disclosed funding rounds, no parent company beyond CMA, no M&A activity, and no management team is listed in the source data. The commercial positioning is consequently that of a regional public-good coalition rather than a venture-backable enterprise.

Name

Central Ohio Trauma System

Legal name

Columbus Medical Association

Website

https://cotshealth.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Central Ohio Trauma System (COTS) is a non-profit healthcare coalition coordinating emergency preparedness, trauma services, and real-time ED capacity (RTAS) for hospitals, EMS agencies, and public health partners across Central, Southeast, and Southeast Central Ohio.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trauma System Coordination

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (62423)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Tele-ER / Emergency Department Virtual Triage & Diversion Platforms (HLALAJAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Emergency Management & Incident Command (EOC/ICS) (EDALAEAD)

Keywords

• Trauma system coordination
• Emergency preparedness services
• Hospital capacity management
• EMS diversion coordination
• Disaster response planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership/Funder Support: COTS operates as a non-profit healthcare coalition supported by member hospitals, funders, and the Columbus Medical Association affiliate structure

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Central Ohio Trauma System (COTS) is a regional healthcare coalition that coordinates trauma system management, emergency preparedness, and real-time hospital emergency department capacity monitoring across Central, Southeast, and Southeast Central Ohio. Its flagship offering is the Real Time Activity Status (RTAS) web-based platform, which participating emergency departments use to notify EMS agencies when EDs are overly busy and to coordinate patient diversion. The organization also delivers emergency preparedness and response coordination and maintains trauma registry services for the region.

Product overview

Central Ohio Trauma System (COTS) is a healthcare coordination organization that operates as a unified service offering, primarily centered around the Real Time Activity Status (RTAS) web-based system. RTAS enables participating emergency departments to notify EMS agencies about capacity status and request patient diversions. COTS also provides Emergency Preparedness & Response coordination and Trauma Services including registry reports, all working together to improve health and safety for Central, Southeast, and Southeast Central Ohio communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Real Time Activity Status (RTAS) A web-based program used by participating emergency departments to notify public and private emergency medical services when EDs are overly busy and to request EMS patient diversion to less busy facilities. It serves hospitals and EMS agencies across Central, Southeast, and Southeast Central Ohio.
• Emergency Preparedness & Response Coordination and preparedness services for emergency situations affecting Central, Southeast, and Southeast Central Ohio communities, including mass casualty incident preparedness, surge capacity management, and disaster response planning.
• Trauma Services Trauma system coordination and registry services for the Central Ohio region, including trauma registry data collection and analysis spanning multiple years and regions.

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Columbus Medical AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCOTS is an affiliate of the Columbus Medical Association (CMA), sharing headquarters and administrative resources at 1390 Dublin Road, Columbus. CMA provides governance and organizational infrastructure.
• OhioHealthcoreOthersMajor Ohio health system with multiple RTAS participating facilities including Riverside Methodist Hospital, Grant Medical Center, and other regional hospitals
• The Ohio State University Wexner Medical CentercoreOthersAcademic medical center with Level I trauma center participating in RTAS system and trauma registry
• Mount Carmel Health SystemcoreOthersMulti-campus health system with RTAS participating hospitals across Columbus region
• American Red CrossminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDisaster planning and emergency preparedness partner providing humanitarian resources during emergencies
• FEMAcoreOthersFederal emergency management agency supporting disaster preparedness and response coordination
• CDCcoreOthersCenters for Disease Control and Prevention providing guidance on public health emergencies and emerging infectious diseases
• Ohio Department of HealthcoreOthersState health department for Ohio providing public health guidance and emergency preparedness coordination
• Department of Homeland SecuritycoreOthersFederal DHS providing emergency preparedness resources and coordination for disaster planning

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• ImageTrend: ImageTrend builds EMS, fire, and trauma registry data systems used by public safety agencies and hospitals nationwide. Its trauma registry and EMS reporting tools overlap with COTS's registry and RTAS coordination capabilities.
• ESO Solutions: ESO provides EMS, fire, trauma registry, and hospital outcome software, including trauma registry data products that parallel COTS's trauma registry work. It serves similar customers (EMS agencies, hospitals, trauma centers) and is one of the more direct software competitors.
• Juvare: Juvare offers emergency preparedness and incident management software (eICS, EMTrack) used by healthcare coalitions, hospitals, and public health agencies. Its healthcare coalition customer base overlaps directly with COTS's regional coordination and preparedness role.
• Bamboo Health (formerly Collective Medical): Bamboo Health operates a care coordination and real-time notification network that alerts providers when patients present at EDs and supports care transitions. It overlaps with COTS's ED diversion and regional care coordination mission, scaled to a multi-state footprint.
• Pulsara: Pulsara provides a real-time healthcare communication platform that connects EMS, hospitals, and care teams for time-sensitive cases including stroke, STEMI, and trauma. It directly competes with COTS's RTAS by enabling patient routing and capacity communication between pre-hospital and ED stakeholders.

Broad incumbents

• Oracle Health (Cerner): Oracle Health (formerly Cerner) provides enterprise EHR and capacity management platforms used by many of the same Ohio hospitals COTS coordinates. Its Command Center and care coordination modules compete at the health system level with RTAS functionality.
• Epic Systems: Epic is the dominant EHR vendor for large academic and pediatric systems, including OSU Wexner Medical Center and Nationwide Children's Hospital cited as COTS members. Its capacity and care coordination workflows increasingly absorb use cases that RTAS historically addressed.

Others

• American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT): ACS-COT sets trauma center verification standards and runs the National Trauma Data Bank, overlapping with COTS's trauma system coordination and registry work as the upstream governing body that defines trauma care in the U.S.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cotshealth

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Central Ohio Trauma System