Excerpts from the DailyHerald.com:
Elmhurst Hospital has unveiled a newly expanded emergency department that provides much-needed space to help handle a growing number of ER patients.
With the addition of eight beds, the emergency department could potentially accommodate 12,000 to 15,000 additional visits a year, hospital administrators say. And that extra capacity could translate into shorter wait times for patients seeking emergency care.
“It’s another part of our efforts to make sure that patients are getting the care they deserve in a timely fashion to serve the community as best we can,” said Dr. Michelle Meziere, the department’s associate medical director.
The department was originally designed to handle 55,000 patients annually.
But last year, ER physicians treated 65,405 patients — a 28 percent increase over the tally in 2012, the first full year of operation after the hospital’s new main campus opened at 55. E Brush Hill Road.
A number of factors have led to the influx that mirrors national trends, including insurance changes and an aging population, physicians say.
“The surrounding ERs are also really crowded, and so we find a lot of people that used to go to maybe the eastern ERs or even a little bit west of us are coming here now instead,” Meziere said. “We’re kind of grabbing some market share from some other places.”
During particularly busy times, some patients could end up in hallway beds. But with the expansion — bringing the total number of department beds to 39 — the hospital hopes to cut back on that practice, said Adam Johnson, the emergency department director.
The new addition will accept patients eight hours a day from 3 to 11 p.m. Each room is identical and comes with a bathroom.
The Elmhurst Memorial Hospital Foundation funded the $600,000 project to expand the department into what was a neighboring unit called the centralized admissions area. Crews broke ground in September on the first major modification to the department since the main campus was built at 55. E Brush Hill Road.
The hospital foundation also is raising funds to address space needs in the critical care and inpatient units, which are often at or near full capacity. Fundraising also continues for an expansion of the hospital’s behavioral health services and preventive programs at the Diabetes Learning Center.
thanks Chris
#1 by Drew Smith on October 29, 2017 - 11:53 AM
Centegra closed in-patient beds and Elmhurst opened ER beds. Two different things. Unfortunate for Woodstock and Crystal Lake but Centegra Woodstock is now almost exactly halfway between the McHenry and Huntley facilities. The focus on healthcare is get them out of the facility ASAP. There are legitimate medical reasons for this (disease transmission for one and expenses are another).
I’d be curious to know the effect of the Centegra Huntley opening on Advocate Sherman as I am sure it’s location was to capture the same healthcare demographic.
#2 by Michael M on October 27, 2017 - 12:04 PM
It is ironic that some hospitals are cutting inpatient capacity (Centegra Woodstock) and others are discussing ways to add capacity (Elmhurst). I believe that what Elmhurst is seeing is the new reality in healthcare and sooner or later, Hospitals will have to find ways to add capacity, for reasons that this article states.
The reality is the population is aging and as time goes on, will unfortunately use the healthcare system more and more.
Edwards has added capacity to their Intensive Care Unit in the last few years as well.
I would think sooner or later, the fact that Centegra stopped taking inpatient admissions at Woodstock will come back to haunt them. My guess is more than likely, McHenry (NIMC) and Huntley will end up going on by-pass at some point.
Hospital administrators I think, are not living in reality.