Emergency Services

ED Message to Patients
Welcome to the Emergency Department of Sacred Heart Hospital. This is a specialized department designed for patients with acute illness or injuries. The doctors and nurses in the Emergency Department are specially trained to care for emergency conditions. We understand that visiting the Emergency Department isn’t an enjoyable experience. But we do believe that we can make your experience a better one by explaining certain things about how the Emergency Department operates and what you can expect to happen while you’re here.

Initial Assessment
When you first come to the Emergency Department you will receive a triage assessment. A nurse will ask you the reason for your visit and take down important information about your medical history, including information about medications and allergies. The nurse will also measure your vital signs. The purpose of this triage assessment is to make an initial determination about the nature and severity of your illness or injury. The triage assessment determines the order in which you'll receive a medical screening examination; it isn’t the actual examination. If, after you undergo triage, you feel worse, please notify the registration or triage nurse right away. You may then have to be re-triaged.

Medical Information Gathering
After your initial assessment, a clerk will take down the information necessary to begin your Emergency Department Records. If you don’t require intensive care and aren’t critically ill or injured, this will most likely occur before you receive a medical screening exam.

Medical Screening Exam
As part of your care, you have the right to have, within the capabilities of Sacred Heart Hospital’s staff and facilities, an appropriate medical screening examination performed by a doctor, nurse or other qualified medical person. The purpose of this medical screening examination is to determine whether you’re suffering from an emergency medical condition.
If you’re suffering from an emergency medical condition, you’ll receive whatever treatment Sacred Heart Hospital’s staff and facilities have the capabilities to provide that’s necessary to stabilize the condition. If the hospital lacks the capability to stabilize the condition, the hospital will arrange to have you transferred to another facility that does, and you’ll receive the stabilizing treatment there. You’ll receive these services even if you can’t pay. You don’t need to have medical insurance or Medicare or Medicaid coverage to get this help.

Why You are Waiting
Our goal is to see patients as soon as possible. But patients who require intensive care or who are critically ill or injured are always treated first. Unfortunately, that means that when the Emergency Department is busy, patients may have to wait to see a doctor, nurse, or other qualified medical person. There are other common reasons for delays:

• The doctor, nurse or other qualified medical person may need time to become familiar with medical history.
• The doctor, nurse, or other qualified medical person may be trying to get in touch with your family doctor.
• The doctor, nurse, or other qualified medical person may be waiting for the results of blood tests, x-rays, or other specialized procedures. We appreciate your patience and understanding.

Leaving Without Being Seen
If you’ve been waiting a long time, you may feel tempted to leave the Emergency Department before you receive a medical screening examination. You have the legal right to do this. But we strongly discourage it. Leaving the Emergency Department without being screened is a serious, perhaps life-threatening, decision that you shouldn’t make out of frustration. You need to consider that:

• Getting the examination may save your life, and not getting it may endanger your life.
• Getting the examination may prevent your condition from worsening, and not getting it may cause your condition to worsen.
• Going to another facility will likely delay, not speed up, the exam, even if you go directly there. The wait at the other facility may be just as long, if not longer (not counting travel and triage time).
• Traveling home or to the other facility could cause your condition to worsen. If you’re still determined to leave, we ask you notify the triage nurse.