Vim & Vigor - Winter 2016 - Community Healthcare - 55

An ambulance rolled into
the Emergency department
bay at St. Catherine Hospital
as a public address system sounded a
"stroke alert."
As visitor Reggie Brooks waited for
word on a friend he brought in, he could
not help but notice the comfortable
chairs and the fresh new look in the
waiting room.
Brooks remembers a time when
patients, friends and family members
spilled out into the hallway of the
crammed emergency room. Now, thanks
to a makeover, patient arrival has been
streamlined and is more welcoming.
In June, the hospital spent $163,000
to expand and modernize the Emergency
department receiving area to improve
patient flow, processing and satisfaction.
"We added a second triage room so
transfer to our 18-bed unit is enhanced,"
says Diana Garcia Burns, director of the
Emergency department. "We can draw
labs and get patients off to X-ray from
there. If there are no available beds in
the Emergency department, we can
start treatment in the newly-outfitted
triage rooms."

Patients come first, Burns says.
"Coming to the ER is a stressful situation. Our whole objective is to reduce
anxiety when they arrive and be able to
get them seen faster by our dedicated,
compassionate and capable team."
With more than 32,000
Emergency department visits logged at
St. Catherine Hospital in recent years,
having an efficient intake area is equally
important to medical staff, Burns says.
"Modern emergency rooms not
only help patients, they help our staff
perform tasks more effectively," Burns
says. "They smooth over bedside registration and access to medicines and
tests. They improve the interaction
between staff and the patient in the
discharge and payment process."
The project also added new finishes
in the waiting room, a quick check-in
counter and a 24-hour security desk. A
former security office was transformed
into a spacious private patient registration area. It is equipped with a large walnut desk and tub chairs to comfortably
seat guests.
"The Emergency department is the
first line of emergency care and support

WEBSITE

In Case of Emergency
For more information about Emergency services at
St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago, visit comhs.org.

Rashanda Watkins and her children are
greeted at a new patient check-in and
waiting area at St. Catherine Hospital's
expanded Emergency department.

for patients in need of serious help,"
says Jo Ann Birdzell, CEO. "We are committed to having professional, expert
teams available 24-7."
Admissions representative Roseanna
Ramirez has seen a definite improvement in the mood of those who wait in
the Emergency department since the
renovation was completed.
"They love the soft muted colors
and the bright open spaces," says
Ramirez, who registers Emergency
Department patients.
Emergency technician Eliseo Almazan,
from the hospital's accredited chest
pain and stroke center says, "To us, our
patients are like family. It's our outward
commitment to make life comfortable
in what can be a scary moment. It's our
way of saying, 'Hey, we care." ■

W INT E R 2 01 6

http://www.comhs.org

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