Wesley Medical Center creates area for minor emergencies

In an effort to reduce patient wait times, Wesley Medical Center has opened a new area in its emergency department to care for patients with minor emergencies.

The 1,400-square-foot area is housed in what used to be part of the emergency department lobby.

The $350,000 project includes eight patient rooms and a nurses station to see patients with minor ailments like cough, sore throat, rashes and sprained ankles, said Jeremy Pauly, Wesley emergency department director.

Wesley found that patients who had more minor injuries were typically the people who had longer wait times.

“Our goal is to decrease that wait time and for patients’ safety to get them into the hands of the providers and have a medical screening done,” Pauly said.

When patients arrive, they will be seen immediately by a triage nurse who will determine if the patients need to be seen in the regular emergency department or if they can go to the new Ready Care area staffed by a midlevel provider or doctor.

Wesley sees more than 6,000 patients each month – about 200 each day – in its emergency department, Pauly said.

The hospital’s goal is to have patients treated and released within 60 to 90 minutes.

The hospital previously had a triage area in the back of the emergency department for patients with minor emergencies, but patients had to be escorted through two security areas to get there, Pauly said. The new set up will be easier with the Ready Care area just off of the waiting room.

The waiting room now has about 30 seats for patients awaiting care.

Wesley Medical Center is making an effort to reduce wait times at its emergency departments across the city. Under the Affordable Care Act, Medicare reimbursements are tied to the results of patient satisfaction surveys.

To see data on wait times for hospitals or other health statistics, visit http://medicare.gov/hospitalcompare. The statistics are based on Medicare-eligible patient data.

Wesley ER patients wait an average of 22 minutes before being seen by a health care professional, according to Medicare. The national average is 26 minutes.

The new Ready Care area will be open from 8 a.m. to midnight daily and will be used starting Tuesday, Sept. 9.

This story was originally published September 8, 2014 at 5:09 PM with the headline "Wesley Medical Center creates area for minor emergencies."