Morris Hospital’s new emergency department set to open March 5

Morris Hospital’s new Emergency Department will open on Thursday, March 5, at 7 a.m. Starting at that time, all patients coming to Morris Hospital for emergency services will enter through the new emergency entrance located on the east side of the hospital, accessible from High Street.

Those coming to Morris Hospital for emergency services are encouraged to pay close attention to signage that will direct them to the new emergency entrance.

According to Tony Bucki, Director of Emergency Services at Morris Hospital, the capacity of the new Emergency Department is increasing to 17 private treatment rooms, compared to 11 beds previously. For patients, this should mean enhanced privacy and less time spent in the Emergency Department.

“The new Emergency Department was designed to provide patients with a completely different experience compared to today’s process,” says Bucki. “As long as rooms are available, patients can count on going straight back to treatment instead of returning to the waiting room. We don’t want people waiting.”

The new Emergency Department also includes a rapid care area, allowing patients with the least serious injuries to be seen quickly by a provider and registered nurse.

“Patients with the least serious injuries and illness sometimes end up having the longest wait in hospital emergency departments while patients with more serious conditions are being cared for,” explains Bucki. “With our new rapid care area, that will no longer be the case. We will have staff and space devoted solely to caring for patients with minor conditions. We expect one-third of the patients who come to our Emergency Department will be seen in the rapid care area.”

Morris Hospital’s new Emergency Department also features a specialized trauma room, pediatric room, gynecology room, and two rooms designated for psychiatric emergencies, along with improved decontamination facilities for biohazard emergencies.

In conjunction with the opening of the new Emergency Department, Morris Hospital will begin using new technology that allows paramedics to consult with physicians in the Emergency Department from the field via live video stream. This will help expedite and enhance the care of patients being brought in by ambulance.

In the Morris Hospital Emergency Department, physician services are provided by EPIC Group, a team of board-certified emergency medicine physicians. Many of the highly skilled registered nurses in the Morris Hospital Emergency Department have trauma nurse specialist and emergency communications radio nurse certifications. Morris Hospital is designated as a Level II Trauma Center by the Illinois Department of Public Health, an indication that the hospital has the necessary resources to diagnose and treat severely injured patients, including the availability of a trauma surgeon, surgical team and CT scan testing around the clock. Morris Hospital is also designated by IDPH as an Emergency Department Approved for Pediatrics and has Primary Stroke Certification from the Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program. There were over 27,000 patient visits to the Morris Hospital Emergency Department in 2019.

The new Emergency Department is part of a $33.5 million modernization project on the hospital main campus that started in 2019 and will continue into 2021. The new Infusion Therapy Center and Outpatient Lab opened in January, with the new Women’s Imaging Center also opening on March 5 along with the new Emergency Department. The next phase of renovations will result in a new area for Cardiac Diagnostic testing, a new pre- and post-recovery area for patients having procedures in the Cath Lab, and renovation of the rest of the Imaging Services department. Subsequent phases will involve renovations in the Surgery department, along with office and classroom space.