In Case Of Emergency…
MedStar’s New Emergency Room Is Open And Ready To Serve
By Kia Lisby
MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center opened their newly renovated and expanded state-of-the-art Emergency Department April 8 in Clinton, Md.
The $43 million project was financially supported, in part, by dozens of MedStar Health associates who came forward to address health care disparities and improve access to high quality emergency care in Prince George’s County.
The new department is expected to serve 40,000 to 45,000 members of the community in a year by either walk-in or primarily emergency medical services (EMS), says Vice President of Professional Services and Support Services Grant McClure.
McClure worked at the hospital as a radiology technologist in 1977 when it first opened.
He says the difference between then and now is that “At that time, it was pretty limited over many years of its capacity to serve the community with sufficient number of treatment spaces in the emergency room. We were limited by having about 28 treatment rooms over the course of all those decades.”
After some 18-months in development, the emergency department now has 41 treatment rooms (a 50% increase in capacity) with spaces that are modernized, much larger, and fulfill more safer and better care for the patience.
McClure stated that MedStar acquired the hospital in December 2012 and was able to make a significant investment in the hospital to improve that primary gateway, which is the emergency room.
The emergency department is a part of a master plan that includes other improvements to come.
Walk-in service will be provided for patients as well.
The walk-in main lobby is a new 26,000 sq. ft. edition with the emergency room, combined with the main entrance and emergency room waiting area, built to accommodate higher walk-in traffic.
The emergency room is in the same location as it was in 1977, now built with the enhancement of 18,000 sq. ft. of additional space for treatment rooms, plus 8,000 sq. ft. of space in the front of the hospital, replacing the old entry way to the new expanded waiting room area.
“The department has specialized facilities including a specialized behavior health unit and special pathogens biocontainment unit to take care of patients with high-risk contagious diseases such as Ebola virus,” said Chile Ahaghotu, MD, MBA, Vice President of Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer at MedStar.
Vice President McClure also stated that other plans are in the future of the facility.
“We have other plans that are forthcoming regarding improvements of the bed tower with a goal of get to private occupancy rooms. After that, I think we have some areas to improve in the operating room area and prep and recovery room area,” which are a part of an ongoing master plan in the works.
