HOUSTON – Patients with serious injuries are often sent to level-one trauma centers. But if Houston's two local centers are full, they may find themselves going someplace else.

"They could be going to Austin, Dallas or San Antonio," said Dr. James McCarthy, Memorial Hermann Emergency Room Director.

This is because the critical care centers in the Houston area are facing a critical crisis of their own.

Damage and financial troubles after Hurricane Ike cost UTMB -- Galveston its level-one trauma center. Now patients are flown to the next closest center with a helipad, which is Memorial Hermann.

"We usually see 450 trauma admissions a month. This October, we did over 600," said McCarthy.  "It was our busiest month on record for the last 10 years."

With about 4.5 million people in the Greater Houston area, there should be four trauma centers.  But what we had before Hurricane Ike was three, and now with UTMB losing their major center, Houston is down to two.

It will take a lot of money to get another center.

"What we're talking about is creating a trauma network in Houston that will take care of you and your family when you get into a car accident on your way home from work, or on your way home from a holiday get together,” said McCarthy.

Right now Dr. McCarthy said that they've been able to absorb the increase of patients coming into the ER.  It's the longer-term care for those patients that's posing the biggest challenge.

And when every second counts, the last thing you want is to be sent to another hospital.