Published on February 22, 2010

Three Rivers Hospital introduces ED Express, a new approach for faster care

Great care right now is the goal and ED Express, a new approach for faster care, is reducing wait times at Three Rivers Community Hospital (TRCH).

"We have listened to the community, and we have responded," said Win Howard, CEO, TRCH. "ED wait time was the number one issue for our patients."

ED Express is a six-bed extension of the Emergency Department (ED). When you come to the ED, a specially trained triage nurse will quickly assess your situation. If your medical needs are of a less emergent nature, she may recommend you to ED Express where a physician assistant or nurse practitioner can see you in an exam room right away. There is also space in the room for family or loved ones.

In the first few weeks ED Express averaged over 25 patients a day, but wait times were dramatically reduced.

"We are averaging just 100 minutes from the time a patient gets here to the time he walks out the door," says Dale Albright, DO, ED medical director and a board certified emergency medicine specialist. Before ED Express, average wait times were nearly 3 hours. "And across the United States it's not unusual to wait six to eight hours for emergency room care, even up to 16 hours at some hospitals," Albright adds.

Howard says that for many the ED is the front door of the hospital. "And we treat everyone regardless of their ability to pay," he adds. "We recognized that surges in the ED could cause long wait times. The community needed a more responsive ED, so we created ED Express."

One of the keys to the ED Express was extending the ED to six rooms on the second floor, increasing the number of ED beds from 17-23, making it close to the size of RVMC. To make the process work, the Patient Services Auxiliary members collaborate with ED staff to escort patients or take them by wheelchair to the ED Express area to check them in and take them to a private room.

"This new process provides a calm atmosphere, without the noise or confusion of the previous Emergency Department," says Jim Huffman, chair, Patient Services Auxiliary.  "The staff is very pleased, patients love it, and the volunteers are busily adjusting to the changes. It is the best thing that has happened since I've been a volunteer." 

The TRCH ED averages about 95 patients per day and 36,000 patients each year, nearly as many as the Emergency Department at Rogue Valley Medical Center.  About 17 percent of the patients who enter the ED require admission to the hospital, and over 80 percent of the patients who are in TRCH entered through the ED.

"We are taking care of the community, in the community," Howard affirms.

ED Express hours are 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., 7 days a week.