1900 Silver Cross Blvd.Coming Soon!
Emergency Department
Emergency Department
Opening Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012 at 7 a.m.
I-355 & Route 6
1900 Silver Cross Blvd., New Lenox
(815) 300-1032
Call 9-1-1 for quick transport.
In an emergency situation, every second counts! So, when it came time to design the new emergency department, improving access and throughput were top priorities.
“Our current Emergency Department (ED) was expanded and renovated in 2006. At that time, many patient-family centered care enhancements were included such as glass-enclosed treatment rooms for noise reduction and separate family waiting areas. In the new hospital, the layout of the department will be very similar; however we have made some adjustments to improve the experience for our patients, their families, our physicians, staff, and paramedics.
For starters, our New Lenox location is ideal and highly visible. The ED is easily accessible from I-80, I-355 and Route 6. To accommodate the increased traffic, we have tripled the size of the Ambulance Bay so that it is now large enough for 9 rigs to pull in. To transfer Level I trauma patients, there is also a Helipad right outside the door. The Helipad even has heating coils to melt the ice during the winter, which will help us in providing safe and quick transports to Children’s Memorial, Loyola, etc.
The Silver Cross Emergency Medical Services (EMS) System staff will also be located in the ED allowing for more frequent communication with the paramedics. Silver Cross serves as the area’s Resource Hospital for 31 fire departments and ambulance services.
Patients arriving by car will be greeted in the ED Lobby at a Reception Desk and then escorted to one of three registration stations before taken to a treatment room. During high volume times, patients will be triaged and depending on the severity of their illness or injury either taken back to a room or asked to wait in the Guest Lounge or children’s area. Patients will still be able to check wait times online for both the Replacement Hospital ED and Emergency Care Center in Homer Glen.
Each of the 34 treatment rooms will have monitoring capability including cardiac, blood pressure and pulse oximitry as well as computer charting. Furniture will be mobile allowing staff the flexibility to stock the room according to the patient’s needs. And all 4 trauma rooms will also have mobile computers.
Patients and their family members will benefit from the many departmental agencies eliminating long transports and increasing throughput. The ED is located next to the Behavioral Health Department, Diagnostic Imaging and Security. There is also a dedicated elevator inside the ED to transport patients up one floor to the Procedural Care Unit for STEMIs in the Cath Lab or emergency surgery. And elevators are nearby to take patients being admitted up to their rooms. No more long transports pushing a cart from one end of the hospital to the other to admit an ED patient. In the new hospital, it’s just a quick elevator ride up a few floors!
When we move on February 26, 2012, we will be ready to care for 80,000 patients a year in the new Emergency Department.
The Silver Cross ED is designated as a Level II Trauma Center, certified as an accredited Chest Pain Center and approved by the State to care for pediatric patients.