Emergency Services
If you have an accident or illness requiring urgent attention you can take
comfort in knowing that your local hospital provides emergency care 24 hours a
day, seven days a week. Highly trained and skilled physicians, nurses, and
emergency medical technicians take care of approximately 12,500 patients each
year at
Our Physicians
The Emergency Department is staffed by a licensed physician 24 hours 7 days a
week. In addition to his or her high skill level of training, our physicians are
all trained in Advanced Trauma Life Support. Our physicians utilize evidence
based and best care practices to provide you with the high quality care that you
deserve.
Our Nursing Team
The nurse’s at
Our Ambulance Team
The ambulances at Southwest Memorial Hospital are fully equipped with the most advanced technology and
staffed with emergency medical technicians (EMTs) who are all trained in ACLS
and PALS as well. Unique to our facility is that the team is dispatched directly
from the hospital. From here, they respond rapidly to accident scenes,
businesses, and residences to stabilize and transport injured or ill individuals
back to the hospital. Once in the emergency department, EMTs frequently continue
to assist with patient care measures which provides for the best possible
communication and continuity of care throughout the patient’s ED visit.
What to expect when you come to the emergency
department
Triage: Every patient seen in the Emergency Department is first evaluated by a
nurse, a process we call "triage." The nurse will ask you to briefly describe
your illness or injury. She/he will then examine you to determine which division
of the Emergency Department is most appropriate for your situation.
The registration process: After be
evaluated by the triage nurse, you will be registered as an out-patient. You
will be asked the usual questions – address, employer, insurance plan, friend or
relative to notify in the event of further emergency, and so forth.
Physician examination: Once you have
been triaged and registered, you will be directed to a treatment room where you
will be examined by a qualified physician. If you require lab work or x-rays,
that testing will be done at the hospital. Depending on the complexity of your
situation and the tests ordered by your doctor, it may take 20-60 minutes to get
the results of the studies.
Discharge from the emergency department:
Upon discharge, you will be provided instructions by the nurse or physician and,
if necessary, prescriptions may be written to be filled at the pharmacy of your
choice.
Admission to the hospital: If you need
to be admitted, we will contact your primary care physician or a specialist who
will take over your care while you are hospitalized.
A note about waiting times
Good medical care takes time. There are times when the Emergency Department is
very busy, either with a high volume of patients or individuals who are
critically ill or injured. Using the triage process, patients are cared for
based on severity of illness. Severely ill or injured patients may be cared for before those who are less
severe.
In the event that you have
to wait in the emergency room or waiting area, please know that your wait time
it is unavoidable and when it is your turn to be seen, our staff and physicians
will take all the time necessary to ensure that you receive compassionate and
high quality care. We are very proud that the wait time to be seen by a
physician in the ED is considerably less than the national average.
A note about emergency services billing
All bills are generated through the Patient Financial Services Department at
Southwest Memorial Hospital.
Your satisfaction with our
service and the quality of care we provide is very important to us. The
emergency department is managed by