Emergency Services

EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

Our goal is to deliver the highest quality care in the most efficient way possible.

Accidents happen…in an emergency, our experienced physicians, nurses, and support staff are here for you. Mercy’s staff is prepared to treat you and your loved ones in any emergency 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The caring staff is willing to answer questions and assist the family with any needs they may have. We hope that you don’t have an accident but if you do Mercy’s caring staff is prepared to treat you with top of the line care, an emergency physician on duty at all times. The ED staff is trained to care for all types of patients and all age groups.

Facts

• Service area - 45 mile radius
• 12 rural ambulance services transport to ER
• Local physicians on call
• Service approximately 16,800 patients a year

Our Staff

Because the Emergency Department is open 24 hours a day, we have highly qualified staff working around the clock. They include:

• Trauma-certified emergency nurses who also are also trained in advanced cardiac life support.
• Specially trained emergency department physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners.
• Emergency Department paramedic technicians.
• Registration and Clerical Staff.

When You Arrive

Triage specialists who are trained to determine the seriousness of your injury or illness greet patients. They create a treatment priority list by comparing the conditions of all patients in the waiting area and are responsible for ensuring that patients who have life- or limb-threatening conditions receive emergency care first.

The triage person also serves as an information source for families and friends of Emergency Department patients. Please feel free to inquire at the triage desk about any delays, questions or concerns you may have.

After the patient’s condition is assessed, our registration staff will obtain the correct, legal spelling of the patient’s name, and the birth date and social security number for accuracy.

In the Examination Room

An emergency nurse or another member of our team will take you to an examination room. The nurse will reassess your injury or illness, and ask questions about your medical and surgical history, and the names and amounts of medicines you are taking. Then your chart will be placed in triage order for the physician or physician assistant to review. After you are examined, the health-care practitioner will decide if additional tests, such as blood tests and X-rays, or medications are needed.

How Long Does It Take?

Unlike scheduled physician appointments, Emergency Department visits are not planned, so your waiting time may be longer than anticipated. The amount of time you spend in the Emergency Department depends on the severity of your illness or injury, and how busy the department is. If you’re the patient, please do not eat or drink while you are waiting.

If the physician decides that you should be admitted to the hospital, your primary-care physician will be contacted, because emergency department physicians do not treat patients in other areas of the hospital. Please plan on being in the Emergency Department at least three hours before being transferred to an inpatient unit.

If you are being treated for a less serious illness or injury, you can expect your visit to last less than two hours. Our average treatment time is one hour and 30 minutes.

If you have not seen your nurse or another member of our team for 20 minutes or more, please push the patient call button in the room. We want to keep you informed about delays and aspects of your care, so please don’t hesitate to ask any member of our team if you have any concerns.

When You Go Home

If you are not going to be admitted, your nurse or physician will give you home-care instructions. We want you to have all the information you need about your illness or injury, so please ask any questions you may have before you leave.

If you feel your illness or injury is not improving within 24 hours, or if you feel worse, please return to the Emergency Department for further evaluation or call the physician who regularly provides your care or the specialist you may have been referred to.

About Your Bill

You will receive a bill for the total amount of charges for your Emergency Department visit, including examination, medications, laboratory work and X-rays. If you would like an itemized statement, please call Mercy Medical Center’s Patient Accounts Department at (563) 244-5678 during normal business hours. You will receive a separate bill for the services provided by the emergency physician and other specialists such as radiologists and pathologists who consulted on your care.

If you have any questions or concerns about any aspects of your care, please call the patient representative at (563) 244-5899.

Visitor Policy

1. We believe that in caring for our patients we care for their families as well.
2. Having a family member or loved one as a patient in the Emergency Department can be a difficult and stressful experience.
3. Every effort will be made to keep you informed of the patient’s progress.
4. Visitors will be allowed in the ER at the discretion of the nurses.
5. To protect other patients’ privacy, you are asked to remain in the patient’s room while in the ER area.
6. When asked by the Emergency department staff, visitors must leave the area immediately.

We want to take the very best care of you and your family, and we want you to be very satisfied with our services. If you receive a survey in the mail, please respond. Your comments help us identify areas of achievement and services that can be improved. For more information please visit www.mercyclinton.com or call (563) 244-5555. Providing quality care, close to home.

For more Information