Maryland's Health Matters - St. Joseph - Spring 2014 - (Page 3)

The Emergency Doctor Will See You ... Faster New service features ED physician at triage during busiest times T he Emergency Department (ED) at University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center has a tradi- Chidi Ekeocha, MD, emergency medicine physician GREATER PATIENT SATISFACTION "Having a physician perform triage enables faster rec- tion of pioneering state-of-the-art emergency ognition and the ability to serve patients' needs sooner. care. Our emergency physician group has the Some patients may just need a medication reﬁll or stitches distinction of being the longest continuously removed," says Dr. Frankel. "We've always been excellent at running emergency practice in the country. UM St. Joseph Medical Center's emergency room opened in the early 1950s, when other hospitals still had "accident rooms," where injured patients from car accidents and identifying urgent and serious emergencies. From triage, the physician can act quickly, when needed, to get patients into a bed in our main treatment area." On the other hand, "the new triage philosophy avoids other mishaps were brought. Upon patients' arrival, any putting patients in an emergency bed when it's not nec- available medical resident, doctor or nurse came running essary," explains Larry Moore, RN, nursing director of the from the hospital's wards to treat them. ED and the intensive care unit. "We separate patients who FROM THEN TO NOW need extensive workups from those who need immediate, more minor care. We created a new lounge next to triage Fast forward to 2014: Our most recent innovation is that, for patients to wait comfortably for results, for example, of during our most demanding hours, we now station an emer- a throat swab for strep or an X-ray. We not only get them gency physician at patient triage in the ED. home faster, but avoid sending them back to the waiting "The idea is unique to the area. Having a physician at area. This has helped reduce length of stay in the ED." triage brings the true value of emergency services to the Having a physician perform emergency triage is part patient sooner," explains Chief of the Emergency Depart- of UM St. Joseph Medical Center's commitment to greater ment Neal Frankel, DO. "We're able to get patients feeling patient satisfaction. better and on their way home as quickly as possible." "People are pleasantly surprised to have physician interaction right away when they arrive at triage," says Justin Koch, DO, one of the many emergency medicine-trained physicians who staff the triage area. "It's very effective. We provide immediate interaction up front with the patient during hours when we expect the busiest patient traffic. We work in collaboration with the triage nurse." CHECK CURRENT ED WAIT TIME FROM YOUR PHONE! Updated every 15 minutes, the ER Wait Time app is available for iPhone, Android and BlackBerry Torch. To download it, go to UMStJoeemergencyplan.com.  Are you prepared for an ER visit? Look under "Be Well Videos" at stjosephtowson.com/mhm. stjosephtowson.com | Spring 2014 3 http://www.UMStJoeemergencyplan.com http://www.stjosephtowson.com http://www.stjosephtowson.com/mhm

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Maryland's Health Matters - St. Joseph - Spring 2014

Maryland's Health Matters - St. Joseph - Spring 2014
In This Issue
The Emergency Doctor Will See You .... Faster
Balancing Act
Hey, Ladies!
Serious Care For Kids
At A Glance
News And Events

Maryland's Health Matters - St. Joseph - Spring 2014