MetroHealth Connection
Emergency Department logs busiest year
 MetroHealth’s Emergency Department is on track to record its busiest year on record, with visits expected to hit 103,000 by the end of December. To help respond to this demand, several new exam rooms have been added to the department.
The increased demand for emergency services comes from people who live throughout Cuyahoga County.
MetroHealth’s Emergency Department was built to accommodate 100,000 patients per year. Last year the department logged 99,671 visits.
Recently, three new rapid medical exam rooms and a clinical area were constructed from reception space in the Emergency Department. The new area was designed to expand access for patients, with the rooms projected to provide capacity for more than 4,500 visits per year.
“We’ve become so efficient we had too much waiting room,” explained Barbara West, RN, Administrative Director of Emergency Services. Department initiatives have allowed care providers to see patients in a more timely manner, resulting in less utilization of the reception area.
The new rapid medical exam rooms “allow us to expedite access in the Emergency Department for minor and moderately ill patients. This is just one more piece that is part of our overall effort to improve the patient experience,” said Charles Emerman, MD, Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine.
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