Freestanding Emergency Rooms – Possibly a Life Saving Alternative

Freestanding emergency rooms (ER) offer time-saving advantages over traditional, hospital-based ERs that may possibly be a life saving alternative.

In 2014, Angel Rivera, age 53, went to the ER at Lincoln Hospital in New York City after a family friend had punched him in the head. When he first arrived to the ER, he was triaged and told to wait in a secondary waiting area for observation. Hospital video tapes showed that Angel Rivera had been sitting there over 9 hours before hospital staff noticed him unconscious and bleeding through the nose. ER staff reportedly stated that he had been called hours earlier, but since he had not responded they had thought he had left. Supposedly, no one went to this secondary waiting area to look for him. After 2 years in a coma, Mr. Rivera died in 2016, and the family is now suing the hospital.

This was truly a tragic event, and one that could have been avoided if Mr. Rivera had received timely emergency care. Unfortunately, the current ER model is inherently flawed when it comes to providing prompt care, and as a result patients suffer from the ill effects.

Read: Long Recurring Problems in Traditional Emergency Rooms.

Like Angel Rivera, Jr. stated on September 26, 2017 to News 4 reporter, Ida Siegal, one of the doctors told him that if his father had been noticed sooner, he’d still be alive today. The family is outraged that Angel was forgotten, and it caused his death.

It is important to note this does not come down to any one person or even a team, rather it is evident of an institutional problem. Patients should be able to have quick access to emergency medical care.

10 Benefits of Stand Alone (Freestanding) Emergency Centers

Stand alone emergency centers are fully staffed with Board Certified Emergency Medicine Physicians, and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and ER trained nurses. By choosing a patient-centered organization, patients gain 10 major benefits:

Open 24 Hours a Day, 7 Days a Week, 365 Days a Year
No Wait Times, Get Immediate Care
Fully Equipped Facility with State-of-the-Art Diagnostic Technology Including, X-ray, Ultrasound, and Cutting Edge 64-Slice CT Scanner
On-Site Radiology Consult, Receive Immediate Diagnosis
Full Service Lab, Receive Quick Laboratory Results
On-Site Pharmacy with 72 Hour Prescription Service
Transfer Agreements with Local Hospitals (Bypasses the Hospital’s ER)
Immediate Access to Your Medical Records
Immediate Follow Up Care via Telemedicine Services
Equitable Costs, Similar or Lower than Hospital ERs

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Footnote

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Family-Suing-Hospital-Lincoln-Coma-NYC-448056553.html

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